


Forget Me Not

by Myoneloveismusic



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Amnesia, Established Relationship, Keith forgets who Shiro is, M/M, Shiro and keith are both in their teens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-01
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2018-07-19 11:42:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 27
Words: 73,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7359865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myoneloveismusic/pseuds/Myoneloveismusic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Keith was part of the mission on Kerberos when the Galra captured the group. While the rest of the group was captured, somehow Keith was transported back to Earth and left there with no memory of what happened or the relationship he had with Shiro. His only self-imposed instructions are to find someone named Shiro, but when he does he finds someone completely unexpected and claims to have known him. As Keith, Shrio, Pidge, Hunk, and Lance form team Voltron and learn how to pilot the mecha and fight the Galra Empire, Keith and Shiro will attempt to discover a forgotten past. But is it even possible for two people with different memories to be together once again? Or will Shiro be stuck in the past with who he knew Keith to be while Keith must learn who Shiro is for what he knows to be the first time?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I kept talking about writing this fic and now I've finally sat down and hashed out the first chapter. Just a heads up, chapters will probably be pretty short and the first couple will be setting the scene-ish to get a grasp on where Keith is in his life and what he remembers. I don't know how frequent updates are going to be because my JayTim fics take priority right now, especially with JayTimWeek coming up in a month. 
> 
> Anyway, here's the first longer thing that I've written for this pairing and I hope you all enjoy it!
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                “Shiro! Shiro stop!” Keith giggled as Shiro rubbed his face against the back of his neck. Keith had woken up to Shiro’s arms wrapped tightly around him as he peppered his neck and back with kisses. The two of them were sharing a room on the spaceship that had brought them on their mission to Kerberos since it was no secret the two of them were together. They were actually very thankful for the accommodations and would’ve snuck into each other’s rooms if they’d been put up separately. It freed up more space for mission supplies as well, so there was really no reason to complain.

                Shiro pushed himself up on his arms so he was hovering over Keith. He smiled down at his boyfriend and leaned in for a gentle morning kiss. Keith reciprocated eagerly and smiled softly after Shiro pulled away. “Come on. We should get ready or we’ll miss breakfast before we have to leave on the rover,” Shiro, said sitting back on his heels.

                “Oh, all right.” Keith at up and pulled Shiro in for one last kiss before climbing off the side of the bed with Shiro following close behind. The two of them gathered up their pants and long-sleeve shirts that had hastily been discarded the night before and dressed quickly, knowing they’d be suiting up after finishing their meal. They left their room hand in hand and walked towards the kitchen for something to eat. Matthew and Samuel were already there and greeted the two men when they entered.

                “Morning, boys! Ready to gather some ice samples, today?” Samuel asked, enthusiastically.

                “Definitely!” Shiro grinned and laughed easily.

                Keith smiled at Shiro and nodded his agreement to Samuel before he pulled out two freeze-dried breakfast meals and handed one to Shiro. They opened their packages and poured the mix into the reusable bowls that were brought on the trip. As Keith took the empty package from Shiro and threw them away, Shiro turned on the hot water tap and filled a glass of water. He poured the water over the mix and handed the glass to Keith so he could do the same. Immediately after coming into contact with the water, the mixture absorbed the liquid and took the form of a scrambled eggs dish complete with peppers and pieces of ham.

                Shiro grabbed two spoons and handed one to Keith as they took their seats at the table, sitting close together. They always enjoyed eating their meals as a group. Conversation was easy between the four of them and they’d grown close during the course of the mission. Keith and Shiro thought it was a nice taste of the domesticity that they had to look forward to when they returned to Earth and planned to move in together after the mission was completed. It was a moment they had been looking forward to for a while after months of sharing their beds with the other person and spending so much time together.

                After Shiro and Keith had finished eating, Matt stood and collected the dishes that the four of them had used. It was his turn to do the washing up and he’d complete the task when they returned from their days work so as not risk wasting time with the task and risk losing precious time out on the surface. The group left the kitchen and moved to the airlock that was settled at the bottom of the spacecraft. Along the wall next to the door were a serious of spacesuits waiting for use. After having but on the suits so many time times, the group pulled on the complex space suits that were needed out on the moon’s surface with ease. Once all of the straps had been secured and helmets locked in place, the air lock was successfully depressurized and the group finally moved out onto the moon’s surface.

                Sitting a few feet from the ship was the rover that they used to transport the necessary equipment to the different quadrants on Kerberos and drove to and from the drilling site. They climbed into the rover with ease, the machine accommodating four people without a problem and still offering enough legroom for someone as tall as Shiro. Keith piloted the rover across the moon’s surface to where they had set up the drilling equipment the day before at their desired site. Keith and Shiro helped to stabilize the equipment as Samuel and Matt conducted the drilling, the scientists’ excitement growing with every minute.

                “Careful with that son! Those ice crystals are very delicate,” Samuel cautioned as Matt began pulling the column from the metal encasing.

                “Isn’t this exciting Shiro?” Matt asked, brushing off his father’s words as he continued to pull the cylinder out smoothly. He’d had enough experience with training and their previous dig sites that the process was a calming one instead of being nerve-wracking despite the possibility that one small mistake could damage the sample and harm the success of the mission.

                “I think you two get a little more excited over ice samples than Keith and I do,” he joked, looking over at his boyfriend who shrugged sheepishly.

                “This is history in the making,” Samuel broke in. “We’ve travelled farther in the universe than any human has. This ice could hold microscopic clues about the existence of life outside Earth.”

                “Think of it, Dad. We could use those clues to be the first people to meet aliens.”

                Keith and Shiro shared a knowing look as the scientists became more excited of the possible discoveries that were hidden in the frozen samples. The prospect of other life in the universe was exciting to them, but they were more focused on making sure everyone stayed safe and the mission was a success. The two of them would think of exciting tales involving extraterrestrial life once they were safely on Earth again and the samples could be studied and offer something concrete to think about.

                Just as Matt removed the sample, large tremors began to pass through the surface of Kerberos and felt like an earthquake. The group looked around and saw a large space ship headed towards them that somewhat resembled the creature from the old myth of the Loch Ness Monster. Shiro’s brow furrowed as he saw a panel at the top of the ship open and a mechanism begin to light up.

                “Run! Come on, run!” Shiro urged to the group. He pushed Matt and Samuel ahead of him and grabbed onto Keith’s hand and he gripped back tightly. They only made it a few feet before the tractor beam began to rove over the surface and caught them in its beam, lifting them from the surface. Shiro maintained his grip of Keith’s hand and they struggled to reach out to each other as their movements became increasingly more sluggish and blackness creeped in from the sides of their vision.  

                Shiro struggled to come back to consciousness. The sound of voices had awoken him and he remembered being captured with the rest of the group as they’d just finished their work with the first sample. He blinked his eyes open and squinted through the fuzziness until he could see clearly. He saw someone, presumably the captain, communicating over video at the front of the ship. He was stunned for a moment at the purple complexion the two men had. Shiro looked to his left and found Keith there, staring at the figure in front of them in shock. To his right were Matt and Samuel, both still visibly unconscious. It was only then that Shiro managed to grasp what was being said.

                “I don’t think they know anything useful,” the captain explained.

                “Take them back to the main fleet for interrogation,” his commander ordered. “The druids will find out what they know.”

                Fear and anxiety welled up within Shiro. “Please,” he pleaded. “We come from a peaceful planet. We mean you no harm. We’re unarmed.” Shiro was about to continue when one of the other crew members hit him in the back of the head with the butt of his laser gun. Shiro fell to the ground and looked up at Keith who was looking between him and the captain.

                “It’s true! We’re a peaceful people!” Keith said, desperately. He was attempting to prevent more harm from coming from the group in any way since they knew nothing about this race of aliens or their customs. “If you’ll just leave us with our ship, we’ll be out of your way.”

                The captain looked at them sharply and narrowed his eyes at Keith. “Take those three to the druids,” he explained to the guards and pointed to Shiro, Matt, and Samuel. “And this one,” he said, turning to Keith. “Is going somewhere special. You know the room. Dismissed!”

                The crew member behind Keith started dragging him to a side door and Keith started squirming and kicking, trying anything and everything to break free so he wouldn’t be separated from Shiro. “Shiro! SHIRO!” he called desperately.

                Shiro fought equally as hard against his own captor. “Keith! I’ll find you Keith, I promise. I love you! Wait for me and I promise, I’ll-“

                The slamming of the door cut off the rest of what Shiro was going to say. Keith looked around him frantically as he was pulled and shoved through a small corridor. There were doors leading off to other rooms, but it was obvious there were no other connecting hallways and the entrance from the bridge was the only one that existed unless one of these other doors led to a room with a second exit. Even if Keith did manage to break away from the guard, he’d have no idea where to go or how to get either back to Shiro or off the ship.

                After what felt like passing an endless number of identical doors, they stopped in front of one and Keith was shoved inside. He stumbled, but the harsh hands holding onto his bindings didn’t allow him to fall to the ground. Keith’s hands were unstrapped quickly and he was shoved into the chair where he was strapped down before he could even think of making a break for the door. He sat there, chest heaving, while he waiting for something, anything, to happen. It felt like one of those scenes out of the alien horror movies where the humans were abducted and experimented on.

                There wasn’t a command or a sound, but something brought the guard over to the control panel on the side of the wall where he punched in a code before leaving. Keith fought against the bonds that were holding him down and looked around the room, feeling a sense of despair wash over him as the door shut. Soon enough, a panel on the ceiling slid back and a machine descended, pointed at Keith. He renewed his struggles with added effort as he watched in horror how the machine started powering up a laser.

                The blast surprised him, first hitting Keith in the chest and then moving outwards across his body. It created a strange sensation that took his breath away and Keith found it an odd reaction since there was no weight behind the laser. He was expecting to feel pain, but instead, the laser seemed to be sucking all of the energy out of him and brought a sense of sluggishness.

                “I have to find Shiro,” he reminded himself as his eyelids became increasingly heavy with every passing second. “I have to find Shiro.” Keith struggled to stay conscious for a few moments, but the battle was already lost and he accepted the welcoming arms of unconsciousness while murmuring Shiro’s name one last time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! Back with another chapter! I wrote pretty much this whole thing today because I was feeling it and the words were just flowing. I was really happy with the feedback on the first chapter and hope all of you are looking forward to more, so let's keep the momentum going!
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith groaned and opened his eyes only to hiss in pain. His head was pounding something awful and the bright lights shining in his face were doing nothing to help matters. He carefully opened his eyes and squinted through the glare of the lights only to find a blindingly white room around him. It reminded him of a hospital room, but he was sure that this was nothing close to being a hospital. Keith moved to sit up, but found that his wrists were strapped down to the sides of the bed and further inspection confirmed the same for his ankles too. He felt panic rising in him at the thought of being trapped here, wherever here was. He couldn’t even remember how he got there and pulled fiercely at the bindings holding him down.

                “Hello? Is anybody there? Help, please!” Keith thought about where he was last and was coming up empty. He felt like he could remember shadows of his life and he certainly knew his name, but there wasn’t anything concrete. He knew that he was able to fly planes and remembered all of the technical knowledge and engineering that went into that, but he had no idea if that was his occupation or if he did something else entirely different.

                The door to his right opened and a doctor walked in. A member of the military followed closely behind the doctor and Keith recognized him as Commander Iverson. They stopped next to his bed and looked over him. The doctor smiled. The Commander did not.

                “Hello Keith, I’m Dr. Charles. How are you feeling?” she asked politely.

                Keith looked over her warily. “My head feels like it’s about to split open. What happened? I don’t remember how I got here.”

                “Well, we were hoping you could tell us that. You were off on,” Commander Iverson cleared his throat and Dr. Charles glanced at him, “work-related business and something happened to you and your co-workers. A few days after we were informed of the incident, you were found nearby the Garrison base which is where you are now.”

                Keith furrowed his brow. “Everything is really fuzzy. I can’t really remember any concrete details from work or any of the people I interacted with. I remember some things about myself like my name and personal facts and some technical knowledge like flying ships and engineering, but it’s like there are all of these holes in my memory.” Dr. Charles nodded and made notes on her clipboard.

                “You don’t remember anything else?” The Commander broke in.

                “No I-wait! I have to find someone named Shiro! I don’t know why exactly, but I know that I have to find him.” Keith looked excitedly between Dr. Charles and the Commander.

                Iverson cleared his throat. “Keith…I suggest you forget about finding this person named Shiro. There is no such person here on Earth and your search would be pointless. I suggest you get some rest at home and relax for a few days, see if your memories return.”

                Keith deflated at the rejection. “But…”

                “Good day.” Commander Iverson nodded at him and Dr. Charles before turning swiftly and walking out of the room.

                Dr. Charles smiled softly. “Now then…let’s get you home, yeah?” She moved around the bed and began unstrapping Keith, leaving the clipboard at the foot of the bed. Once his wrists and ankles were free he stood from the bed, making the pounding in his head return with full force. Dr. Charles walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a pair of clothes and handed them to Keith. “This is what the Garrison supplied for you. I’m sure you’ll have more things in your home so these should get you there just fine. Once you’re dressed just turn left down the hallway and that should take you outside. You don’t need to worry about checking out or anything, I’ll take care of that for you.”

                Keith nodded. “Thank you.” Dr. Charles gave him one last wave and picked up her clipboard on the way out, leaving him to change. He did so slowly, untying the hospital robe and pulling it from himself. He looked over his body and ran his fingers over his skin, but didn’t find anything strange. There were no bruises or cuts or anything that would signify getting into an accident. So what exactly caused this memory loss? He supposed he would just have to find this Shiro person and find out. They must certainly have the answers.

                After dressing, Keith pushed the door to his room open and turned left. The hallways were mostly empty, just a few medical personnel walking around checking in on their patients. Keith passed them without a problem and reached the lobby which was just as empty. He sighed, wishing there was someone there to meet him so he wouldn’t feel so lost. At least he remembered where he lived. Forgetting that would’ve been awkward in so many ways.

                Keith hitched a ride to the outskirts where his small house was located. He was happy that his hover-bike was still parked next to the exterior shed. Keith reached under the porch to grab the spare key that was hidden underneath before stepping up and walking to the front door. He took a deep breath and inserted the key into the lock, twisting it slowly. He pushed the door open and stepped inside, immediately recognizing the place as his home.

                The house wasn’t in the best condition. The walls were bare and had several cracks in them. Sheets were hung up in front of the windows and on the furniture as though he would’ve been gone for an extended period of time. Keith lifted the sheet off the couch and found it to have seen better days. He didn’t even have an actual coffee table, just a square piece of wood sitting atop cinder blocks. There were a few machines stacked in the corners, one of them was a computer, and a single shelf lined with books, but not much else, not that Keith minded. He found comfort in the simplistic nature with which he seemed to live. One wall was even covered with a cork board, but there wasn’t anything occupying it at the moment.

                Keith stood in the center of his living room and surveyed everything around him. He had a lot of work to do if he was going to find out who this Shiro person was. He knelt down and plugged in the machines that had been left there. They powered up surprisingly easy and he’d been momentarily afraid that they wouldn’t work at all. He clicked through the documents and files that were saved on the computer, but came up strangely empty. He wouldn’t just have nothing saved on his computer, would he?

                Keith looked over at the large data bank in the corner. Thinking for a moment and relying on the knowledge that he somehow still remembered, he pulled a connecting cable from the back of the computer and brought it over to the data bank. He plugged the cable into the third hard drive and waited for the computer to begin accessing the files stored there. Keith felt relief flood through him as evidence of past files and documents showed up. He clicked through them quickly and found several manuals and documents on flight plans and operations, as well as engineering schematics and blueprints for various ships, rovers, and hovercraft.

                Keith furrowed his brow. He would’ve thought there would be some information on his employment and he’d at least have a record of where he’d worked or what jobs he’d conducted as a pilot. There were a few flight plans, but they were all Earth jobs, yet he still had information on piloting spacecraft and knew that he’d been trained in that. He was certain that something strange was going on now that things weren’t adding up.

                Delving further into the files he found a personal log. Keith stared at it for a few minutes. He desperately wanted to open it and see if it would shed any light on who he was as a person, but he was wary. He felt that a good deal of information was missing from the computer overall and was afraid that this log would prove to be the same. Keith clicked on the log and held his breath. The early entries seemed to be pretty consistent in his experiences in flight training as a recruit at the Garrison. However, the further he got in the timeline, days would seem to pass between logs and there were times he would refer to events that hadn’t even been mentioned in the previous posts. Now more than ever, Keith was certain that someone had come to tamper with his computer. They’d obviously wiped a great deal of information that he wasn’t about to get back anytime soon.

                Keith sat back on his heels and thought over everything that had happened today. He had a very strong suspicion that Commander Iverson was keeping something from him. The Commander had been adamant that this Shiro person who he felt he needed to find, didn’t exist. Regardless of the fact that someone had come to his house and sabotaged his computer and data files to try and prevent him from finding out information, he was determined to find Shiro and wasn’t about to let this setback stand in his way. Keith was going to find this Shiro person. He was certain that Shiro could help fill in the blanks with what happened and who he was. He had to have been there when the accident happened. Keith just hoped the same thing hadn’t happened to him and he still had his memory. The both of them would really be in trouble if neither could remember anything concrete from the past few years.

                Keith stood from where he was positioned on the floor. He had work to do and if he was going to get any work done, he needed to get his home in working order first. He collected the sheets that were covering the furniture and folded those up, tucking them under his arm while he looked over the rest of the house.

                He had a small kitchen and a bedroom on the second floor. The gas and water had been turned off and Keith assumed that was due to him having expected to be gone for a long period of time for something that ended up causing his memory loss. There was no food in the fridge or the cabinets which was, again, understandable. There were no bedsheets covering the mattress in his bedroom and the entire bed had been covered with a sheet to keep the dust off of it. He pulled the sheet from the bed and folded it.

                Keith inspected the small closet that was in the room and found some bedsheets, a blanket, and a pillow. He made his bed quickly and stuck the sheets that were covering the furniture in the space that the bedsheets had previously occupied. After finishing his inspection of the house, Keith walked outside and opened up the shed with his house key. He found several spare mechanical parts for his hover-bike inside, as well as the switches for the gas and water. After he turned both of those on, Keith dug around and found the keys for his bike. He needed to run to town and go to the bank to get some money so he could buy food.

                Keith hopped on his bike and started the engine, immediately turning towards town. The ride was an easy one and he felt completely at ease behind the handlebars, finding comfort in the wind that blew through his hair. He parked his bike at the central parking center since every building in the town was within easy walking distance of each other and flying through the streets was completely unnecessary. Keith shoved his hands in his pockets and walked towards the bank. There weren’t many people out and he couldn’t decide whether that was strange or not. He supposed he could worry about that later.

                Thankfully, there wasn’t a line in the bank and he was able to walk up to one of the tellers immediately. They looked up from their computer and smiled at him.

                “How may I help you, sir?”

                “I’d like to make a withdrawal, please.”

                “And what’s the name the account’s under?” they asked, turning back to the computer.

                “Keith.”

                He noticed their fingers freeze momentarily over the keys, but their expression maintained the same welcoming smile. He found that odd, but they seemed to gather themself and type in his information.

                “And how much will you be needing today, sir?”

                “100 chips should do it.”

                “Very good, sir.” They dispensed the money and passed over a thumbprint scanner. “If you’ll just confirm the withdrawal…” Keith placed his thumb on the scanner and waited for the confirmation that it was completed. After removing his thumb, the teller passed his money to him. “And here you are! Have a good day.”

                Keith pocketed his chips. “Thanks, you too.”

                He exited the bank and turned right towards the grocery store, but got distracted by the References store. On a whim he pushed inside and took in the musty smell of books, maps, and various texts. The store supplied everything from fiction to research material, to films and video games. Keith walked to the back of the store where the maps were located. There were several global and local maps that detailed the geography on both a large and a small scale. Keith picked up one of the maps of the nearby plains around where he lived. He wasn’t quite sure why, but he felt like he was going to need it over the next coming months as he searched for this mysterious Shiro. He paid for the map and left the shop, resuming his walk to the store, map tucked under his arm.

                Keith made it through the store easily enough, although not entirely comfortable with the shopping experience. He caught a few people staring at him which made him nervous. He really did not like having missing memories, because he couldn’t tell if they were staring at him because they were worried, surprised, or afraid he was going to do something. He didn’t think it was possible for him to be a criminal. If that were true, he doubted Commander Iverson would’ve let him leave the hospital and return home. Unless the government was the one that erased his memories because they’re trying some sort of new experiment with criminals to put them back in society.

                Keith shook the thought from his head. If he kept this up he was going to start worrying about his sanity. He wasn’t a criminal. He knew he wasn’t a criminal. He was just missing a few memories and needed to find Shiro. Shiro would help clear all of this up.

                Keith loaded the bags of groceries and the map that he bought on his bike and jumped on. He started it quickly and left the town behind, intent on avoiding more looks of surprise and getting back home. He had a feeling that there was a lot of work ahead of him and he wanted to get started as soon as possible. The sooner he started looking, the sooner he’d be able to find Shiro and hopefully get his memories back.

                After Keith re-stocked his kitchen, he took his new map and taped it up on the cork board in his living area. The planes were incredibly large, which was why hovercraft were such a beneficial invention allowing for ease of travel over the plains, and he’d have a large area to cover. He didn’t even want to start thinking about the possible rock formations that have been known to be out there and break up the large expanses of arid land. Keith knew this was going to take a lot of work, but he currently had nothing else to do. No sign of a possible career or a job. Shiro seemed to be the only lead he had on getting his memories back and he wasn’t about to let that chance slip away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really appreciated everyone who left comments on the last chapter! I enjoyed reading through all of those and responding and I'd love to get more feedback on this chapter now that we know what's happening with Keith. 
> 
> If you want to hit me up on tumblr----> my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com  
> I'm literally on there all the time and it's often open in my web browser while I work on my fics.
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> <3 MOLIM


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I probably could've posted this sooner, but yesterday when I was writing it I got super distracted by when the Alteans would've landed the blue Lion on Earth and what sort or research Keith would have to go through during the year that he spent exploring the caves. So basically, you're gonna get to see my theories in to what happened when the lions were sent away and how Keith managed to know what the messages in the cave were saying. Not in this chapter exactly, but we'll get there. This is just the start of it all. 
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith blinked his eyes open and squinted through the sunlight that was streaming through his window. He groaned and rolled onto his back before propping himself up on his elbows. He would’ve assumed that he would’ve woken up feeling disconcerted or out of place since he was missing most of his memories, but he felt content. At peace. At home.

                Keith threw the blankets off of him and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He wasn’t sure why, but last night he’d kept to the left side of the bed. The bed was obviously big enough for two and he could’ve slept in the middle, but he hadn’t and he wasn’t entirely sure why. Keith stood from the bed and walked over to the small dresser that had been pushed into the corner of the room. He pulled open the top drawer and found some pants, long-sleeved shirts, and a black vest inside.

                Keith pulled out the vest and held it up to him, finding that it was far too large for his frame. His brow wrinkled in confusion.

                “Why do I have clothes that aren’t even in my size?” He wondered aloud. There was always the possibility that someone else used to live here with him, a friend maybe. Shrugging off the thoughts and deciding to worry about it later, Keith replaced the vest in the drawer and pushed it shut. He moved to the second drawer and pulled it open, finding a pairs of pants, tees, and a jacket inside.

                Keith pulled out a shirt and held it up to himself, relieved that this one was in his size. He gathered up a set of clothes in his arms and set them on top of the dresser. He undressed quickly, pulling off the clothes that had been given to him the previous day when he left the Garrison and pulled his own clothes on, finding that they fit much better than what he’d been wearing.

                As he was folding the old clothes up and placing them in the dresser he spotted two pairs of boots on the floor. One pair was black and the larger of the two. Keith assumed those belonged to the owner of the other clothes. Next to the black boots was a pair of red, black, and white ones that matched the jacket he was wearing. He slid his feet into the boots and found they fit perfectly.

                Keith left the bedroom and walked downstairs to the kitchen. He pulled out a packet of instant oatmeal and poured it in a small pot with a cup of water. He set it on the stove to boil and while he waited he looked through the remainder of the cabinets. There was a decent amount of cooking equipment. It wasn’t anything impressive, but it would get the job done and prevent him from sitting on a pile of food that he was unable to cook. There was a handful of plates, bowls, and silverware and a few of the ceramic cups had chips in them, but they would no doubt hold up.

                He pulled down a bowl and spoon just as his oatmeal was finishing and pouring the meal from the pot, scraping the food that stuck to the sides out with his spoon. Keith picked up his bowl and spoon and carried it into his living room with him. He looked over the map that he’d taped up the day before. He spotted a small box in the corner that he hadn’t looked through yesterday and knelt down to rummage through hit. He found several black markers, a few notepads, several pads of post-its, and a box of tacks for the cork board, there was even a camera inside.

                Keith pulled out the markers and the box of thumb tacks, setting the latter on the coffee table next to his breakfast. He uncapped one of the markers and moved to the map. He made a small circle where his shack was as his starting point in the bottom right hand corner of the map. Keith looked over the marked plains and changes in elevation. He picked up his breakfast and began eating again as he looked over the surrounding area.

                Most of what was near his shack was flat land. It wasn’t until he would get several thousand kilometers away that rock formations began to crop up and valleys formed. Moving directly west would take him back towards the Garrison. Keith thought it over and decided to stay away from that area for the time being. Moving north-west would bring him to the closest cropping of rocks while giving the military base a wide berth.

                After finishing his breakfast, Keith deposited his dishes in the kitchen sink and moved outside to the shed. He’d need some sort of bag to carry food and supplies in if he was going to map out his work. He searched through several bins of spare parts and tools before spotting a small metal storage box. Sitting on top of the box was a belt with two pouches attached to the sides. He’d be able to carry his food and the camera in that. Keith opened the storage box and found a knife inside. The handle of the knife was taped over and the sheath was worn down from use.

                He clipped the knife to the back of the belt that was now situated around his hips and returned to his house. He pulled out one of the notepads from the bin and a marker, sliding those and the camera into one of his pouches. Keith walked into the kitchen and made himself a sandwich. He tucked the food and a small canteen of water into his other pouch and walked out to his hovercraft. He slung a leg over the side and placed his feet on the pedals before flipping the switch to start the engine. Keith twisted the handles and gently rose from the ground, angling himself around his house and headed towards the rock formations.

                As was to be expected, most of the land surrounding his house was flat with a few dunes to break up the expanse. Keith crossed the land quickly and slowed as he approached the mountains of stone and rock. There was a small pathway between two walls and he angled his craft for the opening, just barely fitting inside.

                Keith expected to be confined to such a small space for most of the day, but was surprised when everything opened up after a few minutes. He lowered his craft and climbed from his seat, looking over the valley that had suddenly opened up around him. He’d come out on a cliff hanging that dropped off a few feet away. But that wasn’t the really amazing thing.

                There was no way to get up or down from the ledge, but the opposing crevice wall was covered in ancient dwellings built into the side. He had no idea that there used to be people living here and would’ve thought that some group of scientists or at least people had stumbled upon this area and documented the findings here. Or someone had and they’d been in Keith’s position with no way to get down or across.

                Keith furrowed his brow. That conclusion didn’t make sense either, because they had helicopters. They had climbing equipment. So why didn’t anyone know about this area? He turned and looked at the rocks above him, searching for some sort of pathway or cave opening, but came up empty. Keith huffed in frustration and ran his fingers through his hair. Knowing that he wouldn’t be able to look at the dwellings, he pulled the camera from his belt and focused the viewfinder on the opposite area, successfully capturing the image.

                Keith kneeled at the edge of the cliff and peered over the edge. His eyes widened and he was incredibly thankful that he didn’t get dizzy when looking down from high points. He was faced with a sheer vertical cliff that descended about a kilometer.

                He sat back and sighed, looking up at the sky. It was possible that the pathways or steps had been washing out over time or there was another entrance to the valley that he wasn’t aware of. There was certainly no way that Keith was going to be getting down there on his own and he didn’t want to raise suspicions by bringing someone out here to get him to the valley floor.

                Whoever lived here didn’t have a very large view of the sky. They would’ve gotten a reduced number of hours of sunlight meaning they didn’t grow crops and had a smaller visual of the stars if they were proficient in astronomy. Keith narrowed his eyes. He didn’t understand how a group of people living before the age of technology could’ve survived in such an environment. If they did farm it would’ve been done somewhere else, but with the reduced amount of daylight filtering in, they would’ve woken up later in the day, thereby limiting the number of hours they had to work. The same principle would’ve applied to hunting, making them lose even more time because they would’ve had to travel to the hunting sites.

                Keith pulled out the notebook that he brought with him and noted his observations. He was certain that he wouldn’t be able to find any information in history books or local texts, but if he stumbled upon similar dwellings built into the other rock formations, they could provide additional insight into how these people lived.

                He groaned and got to his feet, replacing the notebook in his belt and making his way over to his hovercraft. Keith resumed his seat and started the machine once again, maneuvering back through the small opening between the rock walls and exiting the spot he’d been in. He turned north and followed along the rocks, searching for another opening or clue as to what else was around here, but found nothing.

                Soon enough the area fell behind him and he was faced with open desert once again. Keith felt something strange start to rise up within him. He didn’t know how to explain it, but it seemed to be some sort of desire or need pulling him in his current direction. He slowed to a stop, confused by the feeling. He’d been headed to a larger collection of outcroppings, but they shouldn’t have been any different than the rest.

                Taking a chance, Keith made a 180 and headed back in the direction he’d been coming from. Almost immediately, the pull became even stronger, urging him to turn around as an overwhelming sense of wrongness washed over him. Satisfied that he most likely wasn’t going insane, he resumed his original course, causing the sense of wrongness to disappear. The pull, however, continued to grow stronger and urged him onwards.

                The distance to the outcropping was deceiving. He knew that he was crossing a large expanse of land, but the rocks never seemed to be getting any closer. If he didn’t feel as though he was being pulled in this direction and needed to know what was out there, he probably would’ve turned back already and headed somewhere else. Keith smiled. Hopefully this would be the chance he was looking for.

                After what felt like ages, the outcroppings were finally only a few kilometers off. Keith revved his handlebars, urging his hovercraft to move faster. They were bigger than he ever would’ve imagined and he had a feeling their size wouldn’t be the only complex thing about them.

                He left his hovercraft parked at the edge of the outcroppings. Keith had never seen anything like this. The cliffs were even bigger than the one he’d just left and of varying sizes. He passed underneath a rock archway and looked over a completely unreal landscape. It looked as though the rocks had grown in such a way as to imitate a city. Keith was in complete awe of the landscape around him.

                He worked his way around the large boulders and over the uneven ground. There was so much here that he had no idea what to do with. Keith knew that it would take a large amount of time to cover all of this ground by himself. Especially since he had no idea what he was looking for. He spotted a low rock and climbed up to the top. It didn’t give him the best view, but it was an improvement before. The cliffs continued to stretch out ahead of him and he’d already made some decent progress, not even able to see where he left his hovercraft anymore.

                Keith sat down cross-legged on top of the boulder and pulled out his sandwich. He allowed himself a moment to enjoy his food and the scenery around him. He hadn’t exactly let himself relax since getting out of the Garrison the day before. He still felt the tugging in his gut that was urging him forward, but it was mixed strangely with a sense of peace. He felt that he was where he needed to be, almost as though this place held all of the answers that he needed. Maybe it did. Keith hoped so, anyway. He wanted to remember what happened to him. What his life meant.

                He pulled out his camera and took a few pictures of the landscapes around him to document where he was since he didn’t bring the map with him. He’d need to start a log when he got back to keep track of what he did and where he went each day.

                Stuffing his sandwich wrapper back in his belt and replacing his camera, Keith got to his feet and jumped down. He found an old trail that weaved its way around the formations and followed it deeper in. Most of the rocks seemed to be completely smooth as he passed by, but that didn’t mean something wouldn’t be revealed upon closer inspection.

                Keith was so preoccupied with looking at the areas around him that he managed to trip over a rock jutting out of the ground. He grumbled and rolled over onto his back from where he was in the dust and pushed himself to his feet, brushing the dirt from himself. He turned around and his breath caught in his throat. Keith was standing between two boulders and facing a complete rock wall that was off in the distance.

                He hastily pulled out his camera and took several shots of what was before him. If that was the end of this place, then this area had to be completely surrounded by rock with only the one entrance he’d come through.

                “How’s that possible?” Keith muttered, focusing the lens once again.

                The feeling in his gut was getting stronger, urging him forward to whatever lay ahead. Keith looked up at the sky. He probably had another hour that he could spend here before he needed to head back in order to make it to his house before the sun went down.

                He started forward, letting the pull take him in the direction he needed to go. Keith passed under another archway before turning to the right, following the cleared path for several feet. He saw that he was approaching the side of one of the outcroppings and became confused. He had no way to get inside of there and he didn’t see an opening. Regardless, he continued forward and was pleasantly surprised when he crested the small hill. Below him, the ground opened up to reveal a cave entrance that was hidden away unless you were standing in that spot.

                Keith raced forward, sliding down the rest of the hill and sprinted through the cave entrance only to skid to a stop. He ran his fingers through his hair and grinned.

                “Yes! I’m not crazy.” He walked over to the wall and brushed the dust off, getting a closer look at the carvings in the stone. They were intricate patterns and must’ve taken a long time to complete. Keith stepped back and pulled out his camera, snapping a few pictures. Some of them looked like lions, but whoever left this had scribbled some sort of message or description into the wall as well. He wasn’t sure what the language was, but there had to a record of it somewhere.

                Keith pulled out his notebook and marker and started hastily copying the language onto paper. He was glad that there only seemed to be a handful of sentences. The characters were unfamiliar to him and it took time to ensure that they were exact. He needed them to be exact if he had any desire to translate what it said.

                He walked further inside the cave, documenting the other drawings and looking around him. The cave wasn’t incredibly deep, only extending a few meters. Keith wondered if there were other caves like this around here with similar drawings inside of them. He definitely had his work cut out for him if they were all concealed this well.

                Keith sprinted back out of the cave and hurried over the hill that he’d descended a few moments ago. He needed to get back to his house before the sun set and think over everything that he’d found today. He was going to be doing a lot of research if finding the origins of this language were anything to go by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and Comments are appreciated! I love hearing from y'all. :*
> 
> Tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> Feedback me please. 
> 
> <3 MOLIM


	4. Log Interim 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I mentioned last chapter about Keith keeping a log, I thought I would post some of the log entries while I'm between chapters. You don't have to read them if you don't want to, but the coming logs will probably have a more succinct timeline of the connections he makes through his research. 
> 
> I'm hoping to work on the next chapter soon and I think this little drabble has got my motivation going so I can get through some updates. So be on the lookout or that. 
> 
> Let me know what you think of the log idea. Kudos, comments, feedback in any form is greatly appreciated. 
> 
> Tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com  
> Thanks so much for reading!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Log 1

                Today was pretty strange if I’m being completely honest. I can’t really explain this whole thing that’s driving me to look for Shiro or telling me where to look, but it’s a little bit creepy. First off, I bought a map of the plains on a whim because I felt as though I would need it. Something was telling me to go to the plains and after today…well, I don’t even know how to explain it.

                I went out to the rock formations that are several kilometers out from my house. I avoided the area around the Garrison because, one, I don’t want to get anywhere near that place if I don’t have too until my memories return, if even then; and two, if there was anything out there, I’m sure that the Garrison would’ve found it already. Although that’s another thing.

                I have pictures of this place, which I won’t upload here. This computer has already been hacked once, I don’t want to risk it again. There’s a hidden drop off in the rock formations. The only entrance that I saw to it was between to sheer cliffs, making the pathway very narrow. I could hardly fit my hovercraft inside and was worried that I wouldn’t be able to get back out if I couldn’t turn around. But the tunnel opened up on a ledge before this sheer drop-off.

                On the other side of the drop-off were ancient houses built into the side of the cliff face. I thought it was incredible architecture and took a huge amount of skill to build for how old they probably are. The odd thing was…there was no way to get over to them. No bridge, no staircase, no other entrance that I saw. I’m not sure how a group of people could live like that, but they did.

And you know what else was odd? It looked like no one else had done any excavation work on the place. How could no one else have discovered it? We should at least have some reference to it in history books or local culture pamphlets. I know that I’ve never heard about it. My guess is that no one has found it yet, or someone has and they’re trying to keep it covered up. I’m more inclined to believe the second option.

After I finished at the site and headed north where I got another surprise. I found a cave. It’s got the strangest markings. I’m not sure what they mean yet, but I know that I’m going to find out. They have to mean something and they must be important. I think they might be connected to the ancient dwellings in some way. I have a lot of research to do if I’m going to crack this and my first step is to go to a language expert. There’s one at the Garrison, but no way am I going back there anytime soon.

There must be someone in town that I can go to. And I think I might have an idea of who that person might be.

 

End Log.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look! Another chapter today!
> 
> Tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> Feedback is appreciated!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                The sun pouring through his bedroom woke Keith again. He groaned and sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and getting up slowly. He yawned and walked into the bathroom, starting a warm shower to help wake him up before the long day that he had ahead of him. Keith stripped out of his clothes and stepped under the warm water, wetting his hair and grabbing the shampoo bottle.

                He needed to go into town and see if he could get the writing he took down yesterday translated and maybe get some research materials on the surrounding areas and the rock formations and see if anyone else had found anything on it. Keith hoped that by the time he finished his trip he might have a bit more time to make it back out to the plains. He wanted to explore the rock formations a little more and see if he could find anything else.

                He stepped out of the shower and grabbed his towel, drying up the water that had coated his skin. He wrapped the towel around his waist when he was finished and moved back into the bedroom, grabbing a pair of clothes out of his dresser. Keith dressed quickly, slipping on his shoes and slinging his jacket over his shoulder before heading downstairs to make some breakfast for himself.

                He looked over the cork board as he ate. He’d printed out a copy of the photo of the cave dwellings and had pinned that up. He also had a couple of photos of the cave markings on the board as well. Keith figured he could pick up some string while he was there and connect the photos to their locations on the map so he remembered where everything was. He set his empty bowl in the sink and grabbed his notebook and some of the chips that he took out of the bank the day before, heading out the door to his hovercraft.

                Keith swung a leg over the craft and flipped the switch, starting the engine. He revved it a few times as the machine warmed up and turned in the direction of town. It was a pleasant morning for a ride. The heat wasn’t too bad for this time of year and the air was still cool from the night before. Keith sighed happily, enjoying the world around him and finding peace for a few moments.

                He pulled into the community parking area and set down his hovercraft among the other vehicles, both hover and non-hover alike. There were several people out enjoying the pleasant morning. They were out walking and window shopping, and even grabbing some breakfast. Keith thought he saw some members of the Garrison out, but didn’t bother himself with it too much. It’s not like he was a part of that anymore, not that he wanted to be.

                He walked down the sidewalk towards the References store that he’d been in two days ago. Keith pushed open the door and breathed in the musty smell once again, finding it comforting. There weren’t any other customers inside and Keith was grateful for it. He’d rather not have others snooping around with what he was working on. He walked up to the counter where the shop-owner sat and nodded at the man.

                “Excuse me, but do you know anything about languages?” he asked.

                The elderly man raised his eyebrows. “Languages you say? Why yes, I happen to have some experience with various texts and with identifying foreign languages.”

                Keith pulled out his notebook and flipped to the page where he’d copied down the markings. “Do you happen to know what language this is by chance?”

                The man pulled out a pair of spectacles and slipped them onto his nose. He pulled the notebook closer to him and peered down at what Keith had written. His brow furrowed as he studied the page, but he looked up sadly and shook his head. “I’m sorry, but that’s not anything I’m familiar with. It looks as though it has some resemblance to Greek, but only partly.”

                Keith sighed and shoved the notebook back in his belt. “That’s all right, I’ll just have to do more research. Do you happen to know about the local history around here?”

                The man smiled and gestured to the store around them. “If I didn’t, I don’t think I’d be much help running a store like this.” He chuckled. “But yes, I do know all about the history of this area. Is there something you’d like to know?”

                “Yeah, do you know…were there any groups of indigenous people that lived around here?”

                “Indigenous people? No there weren’t. At least, we have no record of them. Nothing’s ever been actively excavated by researchers and the Garrison hasn’t reported anything.”

                Keith nodded at the man and turned towards the door. “Thank you so much for your help. I really appreciate it.”

                The owner waved after him. “Come back anytime! You’re always welcome.”

                “Thank you. I’m sure that I’ll be seeing you again soon.”

                Keith spotted a craft store on the opposite side of the street and walked over, fighting off the thoughts of suspicion and curiosity that were nagging him. He would have to wait until he got home to consider what all of this meant. He’d have to go out to the outcropping and look around some more, see if he could learn anything new from the area.

                He walked out of the craft store with three small balls of yarn, one in pink, one in green, and one in blue. The woman inside gave him a strange look, obviously wondering why he was buying yarn, but Keith didn’t much care what she thought. He needed to get back to his shack and drop this off before heading back out. He secured the bag from the craft store to his hovercraft before hopping on and heading back out onto the plains.

                Once he was back home he brought the yarn into the living room and cut pieces of each color. He connected the pink between the photo of the large rock formation to its location on the map. The blue was between the cliff dwellings and its location and the green connected the cave markings to the large formation. Keith left the board and walked into the kitchen, making another sandwich and grabbing some water to bring with him. He checked to make sure that he still had his camera and the notebook before heading out to his hovercraft for the second time that day.

                The journey over the plains was much faster this time and the area didn’t seem as though it was terribly far off. He parked his craft at the entrance to the large formation and immediately turned to the left after passing under the initial archway. Keith scrutinized the rock wall as he slowly followed along. There weren’t any caves or openings. No carvings on the side. He knew the one cave couldn’t possibly be all there was to this place. It was so huge there had to be other natural formations even if they lacked the carvings.

                His suspicions about the area being totally enclosed by the rock wall were becoming more and more certain. He’d seen no other exit than the one he’d come through. Nothing normal could’ve created a structure quite like this. Long rock walls were a possible natural phenomenon to this scale, but they were always in a line. They never formed a circle.

                Keith growled in frustration, becoming more and more irritated the longer he followed the wall around. There had to be something else. He was sure there was something else. He looked up and shielded his eyes from the sun. Half the day had passed already and he’d made no progress. If he didn’t find anything, he’d have to head home empty handed. Keith wasn’t the least bit prepared to stay out here after dark and it would be no use searching for something that he hadn’t even found yet.

                He sat down with a sigh on a nearby boulder, pulling his lunch from his belt and unwrapping it. He hoped that he’d be able to canvass this whole area before summer came. He wouldn’t be able to stand the heat during the daytime hours unless he knew exactly where he was going and wasn’t in the sun for long periods of time.

                “Where are you Shiro?” he asked, crumpling up the wrapper and stuffing it back into the pouch. Keith stood and hopped down, resuming his search of the rock wall, frustration continuing to mount. Why was his life suddenly becoming so unbearably difficult? He honestly found it unnecessary.

                Keith looked over to try and gauge how far he’d come. He thought he was about as far in as he’d found the other cave, but couldn’t entirely be sure. He did know that he was getting close to the back wall. He ran a hand through his hair, but continued walking regardless. He’d have to look over the whole wall eventually and might as well get as much of it covered now as he could.

                He trudged up the mound that’d risen up in front of him, not expecting anything to be there, but came face-to-face with another cave. Keith sank to his knees staring at it in disbelief. He couldn’t believe it. It was like the universe was fucking with him, making him walk around this wall all damn day waiting until the last possible moments to reveal its secrets.

                Keith frowned, but pushed himself to his feet regardless. He pulled out his camera and took a picture of the entrance that rested slightly above him. The cave ceiling was lower and it was narrower than the other one, but he was still able to walk in easily.

                Just like the other cave, the walls were covered with carvings. Some were the same as those he saw the day before, but he found some new ones too. Keith took generous pictures of the walls, making sure to document each drawing just in case. He also found another piece of writing. He pulled out his notebook and compared it, finding it to be the exact same as what was in the other cave.

                At the end of the cave where the drawings started to dwindle, Keith found something that didn’t resemble anything else. It was a line, bent in several places as the direction of it changed. He felt unnerved by it in a sense, as though he should know what it was. He sat down on the cave floor and stared up at it, trying to figure out where he’d seen it before.  He pulled out his journal and copied it down in his notebook. It felt important to him somehow and he was determined to find out what it was.

                The shape was familiar. Drawings like this weren’t randomly and Keith knew it had a purpose. There was no way that someone would take the time to carve that into the wall just for it to mean nothing. The lines were purposeful.

                With a start, Keith realized what he was looking at. It had to be a constellation. No other symbol could represent the pattern of stars like this one would and it wasn’t this people’s language because he had evidence of what that language was.

                He jumped to his feet and sprinted towards the cave entrance, immediately heading towards where he’d left his hovercraft. He was several kilometers away from where he’d parked it, but he didn’t let that stop him. He needed to get a star chart as soon as possible and he needed to figure out what this constellation was. He sincerely hoped that it would be the key to unlocking everything that he’d found.

                Keith practically jumped onto his hovercraft when he reached it, out of breath and sweating. The engine roared to life and he swung around, nearly toppling the vehicle and shot off across the plains. The distance couldn’t be crossed fast enough and he urged his craft to move faster at every opportunity.

                “Come on, come on,” he muttered under his breath.

                Keith sighed in relief when his house finally popped up in the distance. He continued to speed towards it, continuing to close the distance as fast as possible. The ground raced by underneath him. He waited until the last possible minute to slow, doing it so violently that he almost threw himself over the handlebars.

                Keith nearly tripped over his own feet and stumbled up the stairs to his front door. He threw it open and scrambled towards the boxes in his living room. He dropped to his knees and started searching frantically. He pulled open box after box, shoving the contents aside and disappointed each time he came up without a map. How could he not have a star chart? Or at least a book on astronomy? He used to be in the Galaxy Garrison for fuck’s sake.

                Keith pushed the boxes away bitterly when he found nothing useful. He buried his head in his hands. He had no star chart, he had no astronomy guides on his computer, and by the time he could get to the References store it’d probably be closed for the night. He’d have to go back there tomorrow and get the chart. He groaned, needing to find out what this constellation was and language was. He needed to know what they represented.

                He sat back and looked up at the cork board in front of him. He had knew photos to print out and new connections to make. Keith sighed and stood from his spot on the floor. The least he could do was make himself some dinner first. He walked into the kitchen and began searching through the cabinets. Tomorrow would be a long time coming.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm back with another chapter and I'm super excited because we're getting into the research bit and I can finally start sharing my theories with all of you how Keith managed to decode the stuff in the caves about the blue lion and all of that. I hope you're all as excited about this as me because I've been sitting on this for a couple of weeks and I can't wait to share!!!
> 
> If you'd like to come and hang out on tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith was up long before the sun had risen, pacing around his bedroom for what felt like hours. He’d hardly gotten any sleep the night before, tossing and turning and utterly restless because he couldn’t stop thinking about the constellation. It wasn’t a surprise then that after the first peek of sunlight over the horizon found Keith sprinting down the stairs to his kitchen to eat a hurried breakfast before rushing out the door. He nearly left his notebook with the copy of the constellation in his house in his hurry to get to the hovercraft.

                Keith practically threw himself onto the seat of his machine and immediately started the engine, towards town for the third time that week. Somehow he knew it wasn’t going to be the last. The ride was chillier than normal since he was out earlier in his excitement to finally have answers.

                He pulled into the usual parking area. There was only one other vehicle there and Keith ended up snagging a pretty good spot. He hurried down the street back down to the references store and watched as a few other shops were finishing up their set-ups for the day. He received a few curious looks for being up and in town so early, but he really wasn’t bothered by it. They could think him strange if they wanted to.

                Keith burst through the door to the store excitedly, startling the owner who had resumed his place behind the counter.

                “Can I help you, young man?” he asked, eyes wide.

                Keith hurried over to the counter. “Yes, do you have any constellation maps or books on constellations?”

                The man smiled and pulled out his pipe. “Sure do. Constellation maps are in the back with the others and the books are in the astronomy section on the right-hand wall.”

                “Thanks!” he hurried to the back of the store where boxes of maps were stored. Keith saw that each of the boxes was labeled and hurried over to the one that said “astronomy.” He pulled out the first paper roll he could get his hands on and unrolled it. The printing on the map was circular. It had all of the constellations drawn in with their names typed neatly next to them. Satisfied, Keith rolled the paper back up and headed to the books.

                He skimmed over the titles, bypassing the general science books that introduced the basics of astronomy. Near the bottom of the shelf he found a large book called _History of Constellations: Myth to Make-up._ He pulled it from the shelf and flipped through several pages. It had each of the constellations listed with the stars and galaxies found in them as well as who discovered them and the legends that were attributed to the shapes.

                Keith carried his find back to the counter and the owner who was thoroughly enjoying his pipe at this point. He set his items on the counter and the man raised an eyebrow.

                “You were quite excited about constellations this morning. Any particular reason?”

                Keith fidgeted slightly. “There’s just something that I need to look up. It’s for a project and I had a spark of inspiration last night and couldn’t wait to come and get the materials that I need.”

                “This have anything to do with your question about languages from yesterday?”

                Keith stared at him, but didn’t say anything.

                The man sighed. “I may be old, but that doesn’t mean I don’t notice things. I don’t get many customers in this shop and it’s always pleasant when I can help someone, even if they do have some stranger questions or interests that you’ve proved to have.”

                “I’m just trying to figure something out. It’s sort of a puzzle really and I really would like to have the answer,” he said softly.

                The owner smiled and held out his hand. “The name’s Vic. I’d like to help you anyway I can. Feel free to stop in anytime if you need more materials to solve this thing of yours. I have lots of different books and if you need something I don’t have, I can send for it.”

                “Keith,” he responded, dazed.

                “Nice to meet you, Keith. This here’ll be 20 credits.”

                Keith pulled out his credits and handed them over before pulling his things towards himself. He waved at Vic as he walked the door, so distracted by the action that he ran straight into someone strolling along the sidewalk.

                “Oh sorr-“ Keith’s apology died in his throat as he looked up and into the eyes of Commander Iverson. He swallowed thickly and stepped back out of the other man’s space. “Morning, sir.”

                “Keith,” he said, narrowing his eyes at the bundle in his arms. “Doing some shopping?”

                He looked down at what was in his arms as though he wasn’t sure how it had gotten there. “Oh, this. Yes, sir. I was just picking up a few things about astronomy. I was hoping to do some stargazing tonight and found that I didn’t have a chart at home.” Keith slowly stepped around Iverson who continued to watch him, moving in the direction of the parking area.

                Iverson hummed deeply before turning his back and stalking away. Keith’s breath left him in a rush and he turned, quickly leaving the store behind. He really hoped that he could reduce their future encounters to zero. The man honestly unnerved him. It was almost as though he knew something that Keith didn’t. Granted, that was probably true since Keith didn’t remember a lot of things, but it was more unsettling than the general amnesia. If he knew any better Keith would say that Iverson was up to something, but there was no way he could be sure.

                After getting back to his hovercraft, he strapped his newest purchase on behind him and started the engine, leaving the town behind and heading back towards his home as the sun continued to rise higher in the sky.

                Keith left his hovercraft haphazardly parked next to his house and ran inside. He unrolled the map across the coffee table and set the book beside it. He hastily pulled out his notebook and flipped to the page that had the copy of the constellation. His eyes moved slowly over the patterns of stars. When he thought he found something similar or a possible match, he’d turn his drawing every which way to see if it lined up, only to be disappointed.

                He’d covered most of the map and was quickly becoming discouraged. Keith wondered what would happen if he couldn’t find a match for the constellation. That would put him back at square one with nothing to go on. He bit his lip and moved on to the next pattern. He reluctantly slid the drawing next to it and felt his breath leave him in a rush.

                Keith was looking down at the constellation Leo. The cave drawing hadn’t been all of it, but the partial was enough of a match that he was certain this was what the cave was pointing to. He pulled his book towards him and opened it to the index, skimming the list until his eyes landed on Leo. Flipping to the correct page he began to read.

 

_Leo is one of the largest constellations in the sky and ranks as the number 12 th largest. The brightest star in the constellation is Regulus (Alpha Leonis). Regulus was referred to by the Babylonians as “the star that stands at the Lion’s breast,” or the King Star and marks the lion’s heart. Another bright star, Denebola (Beta Leonis) marks the tip of the lion’s tail. Algieba (Gamma Leonis), lies on the lion’s neck, even though the name means “the forehead.” Zosma (Delta Leonis) marks the lion’s rump and Al Minliar (Kappa Leonis) marks “the muzzle of the lion.”  It is one of the oldest constellations in the sky and was first catalogued by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century along with the other zodiac constellations._

_Scientists have concluded that Mesopotamians had a constellation similar to Leo as early as 4000 B.C. The Persians knew the constellation as Shir or Ser, Babylonians called it UR.GU.La (“the great lion”), Syrians knew it as Aryo, and the Turks as Artan. The constellation as well as the star Regulus were well known in most ancient cultures._

_One of the most well-known associations with Leo is the Greek legend. The constellation was thought to represent the Nemean Lion which was the beast killed by Heracles (also known to be Hercules) during the first of his twelve labors. The lion lived in a cave in Nemea and was killing the local inhabitants, but couldn’t be killed itself because its skin couldn’t be pierced by any weapons._

_Since Heracles couldn’t kill the lion with arrows, he trapped it in a cave and grappled with the animal until he was able to choke it to death. He then cut off the lion’s pelt and wore it as a cloak, complete with lion’s head._

                Keith sat back, stunned. Suddenly all of the cave drawings of lions made sense. There seemed to be ties to Greek mythology, but Vic had said it himself that the writing carved into the walls wasn’t Greek. He did say that it had similarities though. Whatever civilization built the caves and carved the drawings inside had to at least be as old as the ancient Greeks and that alone was over 3,000 years ago.

                Keith rubbed his forehead. He knew what the constellation was, but that wasn’t helpful. The language wasn’t Greek so that didn’t offer him the chance to translate it and he was basically stuck at the same place he was before just with a little more knowledge on Greek mythology and Leo. There had to be something else that he could look into, but all he had were cave drawings and a language that he had no idea how to translate. Keith looked up and stared out the window.

                The sky was already darkening. He hadn’t realized how long he’d been sitting there going over the map and studying the passages in his book. He sighed and pushed himself to his feet, turning towards the stairs that led to the second floor. Taking them two at a time, he arrived in his bedroom quickly and strode over to the closet to pull out on of the sheets that had covered the furniture a few days ago.

                Keith carried the sheet back downstairs with him and set if by his front door. He walked into the kitchen and started rummaging through his cabinets for something to make for dinner. Settling on a small box of pasta, he pulled out one of his pots and got to work boiling water and cooking.

                Once his food was done, he poured it into a bowl and carried it back to the living room. The sky was finally dark allowing the stars to peek through. Keith grabbed the sheet that was still by the door and carried it outside with his food. He moved off the porch to a clear space in front of his house. Setting the bowl of pasta down, he shook out the sheet and settled it in the dust, taking a seat and finally grabbing a bit of food.

                Keith’s eyes roved over the sky, taking in each of the stars and searching for the patterns that he’d been looking at all day, before finally settling on Leo which was only a few degrees above the horizon. He stared at it while eating his dinner, trying to memorize the pattern and shapes that the stars provided. His book was right about the brightness of some of the stars. They were shining clearly through the inky blackness of space.

                He set his now-empty bowl aside and settled himself down on his back on the blanket. Once again, Keith was glad that he was so far away from town or the Garrison. It gave him such a clear view of the sky and something to appreciate after all of the craziness from the past couple of days, but it felt false somehow. It was almost as though this wasn’t where he needed to be.

                Keith blamed the amnesia honestly. He didn’t exactly know what he’d been doing before whatever accident caused the memory loss and the Garrison wasn’t willing to help. He just wished that he knew where to go from here. He had several pieces but couldn’t fit them together. Leo the Lion, ancient civilizations, Greek mythology…how was he supposed to connect them? He could go back to the rock formations and search for more clues, but that wouldn’t solve the language predicament. He’d just have to go talk to Vic tomorrow and see if he could offer any insight. Maybe there was some piece of Greek mythology that he was missing.

                Finally allowing himself to push all thoughts of research and ancient mysterious aside, Keith turned his attention back to the stars and let himself relax.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're curious as to where I got my information about Leo: http://www.constellation-guide.com/constellation-list/leo-constellation/
> 
> I don't have time to sit down and pour over astronomy books so I'm hoping that this is accurate enough at least to satisfy all of us. I really just need it for the Greek connection anyway. Everything else is a bonus, but if you have any questions or don't understand something, let me know and I'll be happy to explain. :)
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM


	7. Log Interim 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have another log! Can't wait to get to more of the research, but here's this for now.
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Log 2

 

I still have no leads on what the language is that I found in the cave. Vic said there were some similarities to ancient Greek, but it wasn’t close enough to translate. I’m hoping to find some more clues over the next few days that can lead me to some sort of language key that will help crack all of this.

 

I found another cave the other day as well. It was on the opposite side of the rock formation and my suspicions were confirmed that the place only had the one entrance. Inside the cave I found more drawings, but there was something even more peculiar-a partial drawing of a constellation.

 

This morning I managed to get back to the references store and got a constellation map and a book on constellations. Both helped me figure out that the partial was the constellation Leo and I read up on the Greek mythology behind it. Which didn’t really help other than the fact that there was some cultural importance surrounding the constellation, but we’ve already determined that the language wasn’t Greek.

 

One statement from the book that I hadn’t considered earlier was that the text said Leo was known in most ancient cultures. That could mean that there are other clues from other ancient civilizations that held Leo in high esteem. If I can narrow down which of these cultures lions were recognized in, it might help me narrow down the language that’s being used and I can finally translate what was written.

 

I’m going to go talk to Vic again tomorrow and see if he knows anything about the use of lions as symbols in other cultures.

 

There’s one other thing that’s been nagging at me since this morning, well, really it’s been in the back of my mind since I woke up in the Garrison. It has to do with Commander Iverson. I actually ran into him this morning and he was very curious about that I was doing with astronomy materials. I think that he might think I’m up to something. Not sure what that’s supposed to mean since I have a lack of recent memories.

 

It’s even more frustrating since he won’t tell me who I am or what I was doing when they found me. I don’t think he likes the possibility that I could be doing research although I don’t know why that is. There’s nothing life-threatening about astronomy and star-gazing, but that’s probably not the reason why he doesn’t like it. I just hope that he leaves me alone out here. I definitely wouldn’t appreciate him turning up on my front porch.

 

I doubt that I’m looking into things that I shouldn’t be. Astronomy is basically public knowledge, but if I do continue to run into him… Let’s just hope things don’t get to that point.

 

End log.  


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I actually got some writing done for this today, yay!!
> 
> Get ready to hear more of my theories on how I think Keith managed to figure out how to decode what was in the caves. We're gonna get lots of facts and history in here so prepare yourselves, but honestly I'm so excited that we're getting to this point!!!!
> 
> If you want to come hang on tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> Enjoy! Kudos and comments are always appreciated. :)
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith walked into the references store the next day feeling completely refreshed. He felt far calmer than he had for the past several days now that he actually had a goal to work towards and some information to go off of. Vic was sitting in his usual spot behind the counter and was fiddling with his pipe, but smiled at Keith as he approached.

                “Well, what can I help you with today?” he asked, pleasantly.

                “I need to know more about cultural depictions of lions. How often have they been used and what cultures have used them?”

                Vic let out a low whistle. “That’s a mighty large question. Lions have been referenced across the globe for thousands of years. Most notably is Leo and its use in Greek culture, but I’m sure you knew that already with the astronomy research you were dong. The first traces of lions appeared in Paleolithic cave drawings from 32,000 years ago, but have been alluded to many times since then.”

                Vic got up from his stool and moved over to one of the bookshelves with Keith following closely behind him. He pulled down a Bible and flipped through the pages, continuing to talk to Keith even as he looked through the religious text. “In Judeo-Christian tradition, lions make an appearance in the Book of Daniel when Daniel was thrown in the lion den and survived. The prophet Amos used the lion as a metaphor for a prophecy in that if someone has the gift of prophecy, they have no choice but to speak out and share their premonitions.” He replaced the Bible and moved on through the stacks, leaving Keith to hurry after him.

                “In Arthurian legend, Chrétian de Troyes wrote a romance called “Yvain, the Knight of the Lion” where the hero rescues the lion from a serpent. The lion then becomes a loyal companion and a symbol of knightly virtue. The lion also appears in Middle Eastern culture as a royal symbol and one of bravery or courage.” Vic pulled down a book on world religions and flipped through several pages. Keith’s head was already starting to spin with the sheer amount of knowledge Vic was rattling off. “In Hinduism, Narasimha, which translates to man-lion, is thought to be an incarnation of the deity Vishnu who is the preserver or protector.

                “The lion has also been depicted as the carrier of Durga, the Hindu goddess of war. Durga manifests herself to fulfill the tasks of the universe and is the root cause of creation, sustenance, and annihilation. During one telling of her efforts, she protected the world when Mahishasura was terrorizing the universe.

                “Buddhist culture had a large influence on Southeast Asia. Lions were never native animals in those countries and the sculptures and drawings were done from perception and imagination garnered from Indian culture and Buddhists symbolism. Lions became the gate guardian for those cultures and statues were placed in front of many temples.” Vic replaced the book and continued walking. “Lions were also not native in China yet appear in Chinese art and the people believe the animal protects humans from evil spirits and have a Chinese New Year lion dance to scare away demons and ghosts. Singapore, also called Singapura derives its name from the Malay words singa which means lion and pura which means city.

                “Lions have been used for branding and symbols here and there for important families. Ships and other restaurants have used the word lion in their names. Ah, here we are.” Vic had come to a stop in front of a history section on Egypt. “Another country that has a significantly important history of using the lion. The sphinx, the most well-known statue to come from the Egyptian culture, has the head and shoulders of a human and a body of a lioness. The statue was believed to depict the goddess who was the protector of the pharaohs.

                “Bast was the cat goddess of protection in the culture and thought to be the Eye of Ra. The Eye of Ra is the feminine counterpart to the sun god Ra and is a violent force that subdues his enemies and defends him against disorder that threatens his rule. The war goddess Sekhmet was another female deity and was drawn as a woman with a lioness head or just as a lioness. She’s also a goddess of healing and the fiercest hunter known to the Egyptians, usually leading them in warfare.

                “In Lower Egypt a city called Leontopolis was built and the name translates to ‘City of Lions.’ The name itself was actually Greek, but was used more than the Egyptian name which translated to ‘Land of Fish.’ There were many temples there dedicated to the goddesses Bast and Sekhmet that we talked about.” Vic pulled down a book from the shelf and flipped through the pages until he found one with a large picture of writing. “Some of the temples were found to be quite interesting because instead of using Hieroglyphics, the walls were covered in a new language that was developed in Lower Egypt called Demotic. This language was found on the Rosetta Stone between the Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs and the Ancient Greek sections of writing.”

                Vic handed the book to Keith who looked over the image carefully. He gripped the book tightly and stared at the page. “Vic…” he breathed.

                Vic furrowed his brow. “What? Everything okay?”

                Keith frantically pulled open one of the pouches on his belt and grabbed his notebook, flipping through the pages until he found the copy of the cave writings that he’d made. He held it up next to the image and grinned. “I found my lost language.”

                Vic stepped closer and compared Keith’s notebook to the picture before chuckling. “We’ll I’ll be. I think I might have a few books that you can use for that.” He started scanning the shelves, pulling one out here or there. A few he shook his head at and replaced on the shelf. After reaching the bottom and running out of what he had stocked, he traded the small stack of four books for the one Keith was holding. “While you work your way through those, I can make a few inquiries into other stores and see if I can find some more materials to help you out.”

                Keith read over the titles of the books he was holding. “Thanks. This should definitely give me a good start with what I’m working with. Hopefully it’ll be enough to translate this little bit of writing.”

                Vic nodded and walked Keith back up to the front of the store. He re-took his seat on his stool and Keith set his books in front of him so he could reach into one of his pouches for his credits.

                “How much?” he asked.

                Vic just shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. It’s on me.”

                “But I couldn’t possibly-“

                “You can, and you will. They’re on me. I want you to have these, but if you don’t want to keep them, just return them when you’re done.”

                “But…why?” Keith questioned.

                “Because you’ve had a very positive influence on my store. I haven’t got to talk to someone this much for such a long time. If you do want to repay me, join me for tea sometime. We can have some nice conversation and I’ll be interested to know how you get on with those books and working with Demotic.”

                Keith nodded and lifted the stack of books into his arms. “I’ll see you in a few days then.” He left the store and started walking back towards where his hovercraft was parked. He paused in his steps, coming to a decision and nodded to himself. Keith walked back to the references store with a purpose and pushed inside. “You know what? I think I’ll take that cup of tea now.”

                Vic’s face was nearly split with a wide grin after he got over his initial shock. “Alright then. Let me go put the kettle on upstairs. There’s an extra stool in the back of the store near the maps if you want to go grab it and bring it up here.”

                Keith nodded and watched Vic pass through a door next to where he was settled before setting his stack of books on top of the counter. He wove his way through the book stacks to the back of the store and found a box of maps sitting on top of the stool. He carefully moved the box to the floor and carried the chair to the front of the store. Keith made himself comfortable and pulled the first book from the stack towards him.

                He flipped through the first few pages and landed on an alphabet. He sighed, looking over the new symbols. This was going to take a lot of work, but Keith was momentarily satisfied that he had something to do. Something to learn that would help him decipher what exactly was in the caves.

                Vic returned quickly through the door with a tray in his hands. It had a teapot and cups on it, along with several sandwiches. “I figured you could use some food,” he said, setting the tray on the counter between them. He poured tea into the two cups and handed one to Keith who took a sip, enjoying the warmth that spread through his body.

                After a few minutes, he picked up one of the sandwiches and bit into it, not realizing until that moment how hungry he actually was.

                “So, Vic, have you always run this store?”

                “Not always. I actually used to work for the Garrison, doing research and language work. I knew a lot of information on history and science and such from my work there and was always good at remembering facts. Once I decided to quit doing that I figured I could open this little store and keep doing what I was good at. It’s a nice place and I get the flat above it as well so I don’t have to live somewhere else and pay additional rent.” Vic shrugged. “It’s not the most popular place, but I get enough business to keep me going and members of the Garrison will often stop by if they need research materials so that brings in some extra profit.”

                Keith nodded along and picked up another sandwich after finishing his first one. “I used to be in the Garrison, but Commander Iverson hasn’t been too kind these past few days.”

                “So you really don’t remember then?”

                “Remember what?” Keith asked curiously.

                “What you did in the Garrison? What happened?” Vic questioned.

                Keith shook his head and set down his half-eaten sandwich. “No. Honestly, I don’t. I just woke up with no idea what I was doing here. How did you know about that anyway?”

                Vic sighed. “Trust me in the fact that you probably don’t want to know the answer to that.”

                “But if it’ll help me,” he protested.

                Vic shook his head. “It won’t. I know it won’t. It’s not the same thing as you getting your memories back and there’s no way that I can help you with that.”

                Keith buried his face in his hands and sighed. “Why do I feel like everyone is hiding something from me?”

                Vic gave his arm a sympathetic pat. “It’s better to wait until you remember everything that happened. If I were to tell you, you would have even more questions and there’d be several things you wouldn’t be able to understand. Hopefully someday that can change, but there’s nothing that I can offer you right now except help you with the project you’re working on and offer you a spot of tea and a sandwich when you need a break or need someone to talk to.”

                Keith picked up his sandwich again. “You don’t happen to know how to read Demotic, do you?”

                Vic chuckled. “If I did, I would’ve already translated it for you.” He looked over at the stack of books. “You definitely have your work cut out for you.”

                “Don’t I know it,” Keith muttered. “Don’t I know it.”

                The two men sat in silence and enjoyed the tea and food. Keith had a lot to think about. He knew for certain now that something was being kept from him, he just wasn’t sure what, but it had to do with the memory gap, that much was obvious. It wouldn’t be too hard to mention something that he couldn’t remember, considering there was a large chunk missing. He was at least thankful that he had some sort of project to work on and wasn’t holed up in his house all day staring at nothing.

                If that was what his situation had turned into, Keith was sure that he would’ve been climbing the walls out of boredom. He just hoped that somewhere along the way as he kept working and researching that he’d find his answer. He’d find Shiro and could finally understand what exactly was going on, why his memories were missing, and what everyone was keeping from him that was so controversial he wouldn’t be able to understand it at face value and continue on in life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you feel the need to fact check or just want to know more:
> 
> Cultural Depictions of Lions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_depictions_of_lions
> 
> Leontopolis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leontopolis
> 
> Sekhmet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sekhmet
> 
> Eye of Ra: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Ra
> 
> Durga: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga
> 
> Vishnu: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu
> 
> Demotic (Egyptian): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demotic_(Egyptian)
> 
> The Rosetta Stone: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosetta_Stone


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God, I love writing for this fic. Let me just say that again. I. LOVE. WRITING. FOR. THIS. FIC!!!!  
> So here you go, more adventures of Keith learning an ancient language and we have someone new show up!!!! I think you guys are going to like it. This meeting wasn't actually planned, but when I got thinking about it, I figured it would be something that would totally happen. :D
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith groaned as a loud knocking roused him from sleep. He clutched at his head which was pounding from exhaustion and forcing himself to stay up half the night to study Demotic. He thought he was making progress but every time he compared his notes to what he’d copied down it didn’t seem right and he thought he was still missing some key understanding to the language that was preventing him from deciphering it.

                He pushed himself into a sitting position as the knocking continued. Keith had fallen asleep on the couch, much to his own displeasure as his back was already aching steadily from the lumpy surface. The bright sunlight filtering in through the window was doing nothing to help his headache that was pounding in time with whoever was at his door.

                “I’m up. I’M UP! I’M COMING! NOW WILL YOU STOP THAT NOISE?!” he shouted, rubbing his temples. Abruptly, the noise ceased allowing blissful silence to fall over the shack allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief.

                Keith undid the few locks that marked the inside of the wood and wrenched the door open expecting to come face-to-face with Iverson if the noise was anything to go by, but the air in front of his face was blessedly devoid of the face of the Garrison commander. Devoid of any face really. His gaze travelled down to find a young teenage girl standing there, chest heaving and looking up at him sharply.

                She pushed past him into the shack before he could process what was happening. “Tell me what happened up there right now. It’s not fair that you somehow managed to come back here but my father and brother are still up there somewhere. Start talking or I swear I’ll-“

                “Who are you?” Keith asked, cutting her off.

                She halted mid-pace, the angry and hurt expression melting into one of shock and sadness. “So you really don’t remember.”

                He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. “Everyone keeps saying that, but I don’t know what I’m supposed to remember!” Keith groaned and scrubbed his face with his hands, realizing how stupid that actually sounded after it came out of his mouth. Of course he wouldn’t remember anything. He had amnesia. "So who are you exactly?”

                She seemed to find her resolve and drew herself up to her full height. “My name’s Katie Holt. And you knew my father and brother.”

                “Why don’t you come into the kitchen? I can fix us something to eat while we talk,” he said beckoning her to follow. Katie followed him into the other room and took a seat at the table as he got cooking. She stayed silent but he could feel her eyes boring into his back, watching his every move. It might’ve unnerved someone else but he knew she wanted answers just like he did and they were both simply trying to figure out this whole fucked up situation.

                Keith sat down opposite Katie at the table and slid a plate with an omelet over to her while keeping the other for himself. “So,” he began, sighing deeply, “who are your father and brother?”

                “Matthew and Samuel Holt. They’re scientists. They were drafted to join a mission to Kerberos which, as I’m sure you know, is one of Pluto’s moons. Their job was to extract and transport back ice samples that would aid humanity in studying the universe and the possibility of alien life. The mission was thought to be lost a few months ago.”

                “Right,” he said, taking a bite of his own omelet, “and how was I involved exactly?”

                “You were one of two pilots assigned to the mission that helped navigate through space and ensure the success of it.”

                Keith nodded along. “And who was the other pilot?”

                “Takashi Shirogane, but many people just called him Shiro.”

                Keith dropped his fork and stared across the table at Katie. “Sh-shiro?”

                She pushed herself excitedly to her feet. “Do you remember him? If you remember him then you must be able to remember something else form the mission?”

                He shook his head. “All I remember is the name. I have this strong feeling that I need to find him, but I don’t know why and I don’t know where he is.”

                Katie sank back down into her chair, visibly disappointed.

                “I’m sorry,” he whispered, staring at his food.

                “It’s not your fault. The reports said that you didn’t remember anything and it was foolish enough for me to get my hopes up.”

                “Reports? What reports?”

                She at least had the decency to look somewhat sheepish. “Well…you have to understand that the Garrison wasn’t giving us any information-my Mom and I. It made sense to keep it quiet from civilians and the general public until they had a better idea of what exactly happened, but they didn’t do anything for us. They simply said the mission was lost due to pilot error. Until you came back, that is. Then they started talking about some other ridiculous story about an escape pod and how you managed to get back to Earth, but didn’t remember anything, claiming that was the only logical explanation as to how you got back. Pretty convenient for them since you have amnesia and can’t call any of it into question of deny it. I’m sure if you did remember something, you wouldn’t be sitting here right now.

“Anyway…I knew they were lying because you and Shiro were great pilots. Far ahead of your class with abilities off the charts compared to normal trainee levels. You advanced through Garrison training at a faster pace than the others and that’s how both of you managed to be assigned the same mission even though Shiro’s a little older. So what happened was I basically snuck into Garrison and hacked into Commander Iverson’s computer to look at the reports-not that that was hard,” she added with a snort. “Honestly, you’d think a government official would at least know something about using difficult and complex passwords and putting up extra firewalls and security protocols for important documents and government secrets.

                “Anyway…I know I keep getting off track…I hacked his files and the reports said that it wasn’t due to pilot error. They lost transmission with you and it was almost as though everything that was there on Kerberos, or was supposed to be there, had been swept away. They listed a reference to some top-secret project or research saying that would explain everything on why the team disappeared. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to delve further into the files and figure out what exactly Protocol Adrasteia is before I was caught and kicked out of the Garrison, but it _is_ something big, I know that.”

                Keith sat back, stunned at all the information that had just been given to him. “You snuck in the Garrison and hacked into a government computer?”

                Katie looked slightly embarrassed and fidgeted nervously. “Yeah…”

                “That’s…amazing!” he said, excitedly, surprising Katie.

                “W-what?”

                “You hacked into a government computer system, you must be some sort of super genius or something!” He grinned widely at her making her blush, but she seemed pleased with the praise.

                “Really that’s not necessary.”

                Keith happily picked up his fork again and started eating. “I mean you have to be really good to get past government tech. You’re probably the only outsider who knows how. So what are you going to do now?”

                “I’m joining the Garrison.”

                “Didn’t you just say you got kicked out of the Garrison?”

                Katie smiled. “ _Katie Holt_ got kicked out of the Garrison. _Pidge Gunderson_ on the other hand… I’m sneaking into the Garrison and enlisting as a communications trainee. I’m hoping in my spare time to learn more about what’s going on there. I don’t trust them. They’re hiding something big and I think it has something to do with my family and I want to know what it is now that they let my family get involved.”

                Keith pushed his now empty plate aside and furrowed his brow. “I suppose it would have something to do with me as well. I mean, it’s not like they were expecting me to come back after they concluded the mission was lost and since they won’t tell me anything it’s not too hard to figure out they know something that we don’t.”

                “So what you’re saying…” she started, giving him a significant look, “is that we should help each other out.”

                “Katie!” Keith gasped. “Well I never… If you think I’m suggesting you steal government secrets and share them with me…I’m appalled! The nerve!”

                “Forgive me, I didn’t mean to upset your _delicate_ constitution,” she giggled.

                Keith joined in with his own laughter. “Come on, let me show you something.” He stood from his chair and Katie followed him back to the living room, leaving her untouched food on the table. He brought her over to the cork board that was now filled with pictures and diagrams and arrows leading to all of the spots he’d found.

                “Wow,” she breathed. “What is this?”

                “I’ve been doing some research. I stumbled on some caves with drawings in them and even some cliff dwellings, but there’re no records of any indigenous people living out here. I’ve been trying to figure out what it all means over the past few days and have found connections to ancient civilizations across the globe thanks to the reoccurrence of lions in culture. It might turn out to be connected to whatever it is you’ve found.”

                Katie furrowed her brow, eyes roving over all of the information laid out before her and shook her head. “I don’t think so. Or at least, it’s too early to tell. I haven’t found any connections to ancient cultures or lions so that might be a long shot. I think what I’m looking into is far more recent with the space travel the Garrison has been funding and completing, but all of those conclusions depend on the details that are described in Protocol Adrasteia.”

                Keith shrugged, not bothered by her dismissal. “It was just a thought.”

                She hummed in acknowledgment. “Hey…are you keeping computer records of all of your findings or is this it here? Do you have backup copies of everything?”

                “I don’t. Most of what I’m keeping is handwritten. I think my computer was already hacked once and I don’t want to risk the same thing happening twice and people finding out what I’m doing. It’s pretty delicate work and I don’t need them to be any more suspicious of me. I bet they’re just dying for a reason to claim that I’m faking the amnesia so that they can lock me up and keep an eye on me.”

                “You should really have electronic backups just in case something happens to these or the ones you carry with you. I could do some work on your computer and show you how to encrypt this stuff if you’d like. It wouldn’t take too long to restructure the security on it and create hidden files that are buried so deep, no one in a hurry is going to be able to find them.” Katie looked up at him expectantly and if her expression was anything to go by, he assumed it was probably in his best interest to accept the offer than face whatever else she’d throw at him.

                “Sure. That would actually probably help a lot.”

                “Great!” she exclaimed brightly and sat down in front of his monitor. Keith took a seat next to her and watched her get to work immediately, fiddling with his computer in ways that he didn’t even know how to do. Her brow furrowed in concentration after a few minutes. “You were right about your computer being hacked. They did a sloppy job of it, but unfortunately were competent enough to effectively delete what they were after and I can’t get it back.” She looked up at him. “Sorry about that.”

                Keith waved off the apology. “There’s nothing that can be done. It’s just another one of those things that I’m learning to live with since I got back.”

                Katie nodded and resumed her work. “Okay, so I’m creating this file here which you can use to store your information files of everything that you’ve been collecting as well as logs if you keep that sort of thing. This is the password that I’ve assigned to the folder. I’d suggest memorizing this one because anything you come up with probably won’t stand up to a hacker who is looking for this. Saving and archiving your information is done exactly as you normally would except for the fact that it’s just saved in a more secure location.”

                She opened up the web browser next. “I’m assuming you have email,” she said, not bothering to wait for a confirmation. Without even telling her what server he used, Katie had pulled up his email provider and logged into his account without even questioning him on his password.

                “How did you do that?”

                “Make a stronger password and I won’t be able to get in so easily. Now…here’s my contact information. This is an email you can reach me from. I probably won’t have frequent access to a phone being on the base and all so we can’t rely on calling each other for updates and this will let us share information back and forth. I’ve encoded it so if someone does manage to hack it-which is a high possibility if you _don’t change your password_ -they won’t be able to trace it back to me. Just type in ‘KT’ and it’ll get sent to me.”

                Katie exited out of his email and flipped through a few pages of coding before she was, seemingly, satisfied. “There you go. All finished,” she said, crossing her arms with a grin.

                “That was actually really impressive to watch.”

                She shrugged and got to her feet. “I should be heading back. I have a few things to do before tomorrow and my first day at the Garrison to make sure that nobody recognizes me.”

                Keith stood up next to her and held out his hand which she shook and grinned. “I should get back to learning Demotic anyways and I’m gonna need you to not get kicked out of the Garrison a second time, being my black hat hacker and all.

                The two walked to the front door together. “Oh so that’s all I’m good for now? Never mind the fact that I basically just armored up your computer for you so you don’t have to worry about losing all of your research.”

                He chuckled and pulled open the door for her which she stepped out of. “Thanks. I really appreciate this. Talk to you soon?”

                Katie nodded and walked away, leaving Keith on his own once again. Shaking his head, he shut the door and turned back to his computer.

                Keith spent several hours inputting all of his data and moving logs to the now secure files. It took longer than he would’ve liked to become familiar with the new setup, but he had to admit that it was a good one and he felt reassured by it all. He was no longer worried about what would happen if someone broke into his home or caught wind of what he was researching. He already felt as though people were watching his every move.

                He moved back to his spot on the couch that he’d occupied the night before and looked over the open books that covered every available surface of the table. Keith sighed deeply, but got back to work regardless. Katie was going to be hard at work infiltrating the Garrison and finding information on the secret projects that were going on there, not to mention the responsibilities she’d have to undertake to ensure that she was able to stay in the Garrison. They wouldn’t exactly keep a slacker enrolled. The least he could do while he waited was learn how to read this increasingly infuriating language that he’d stumbled on.

                Even if he had some form of concrete evidence now that Shiro was an actual person who was from Earth, he couldn’t put a stop to this project. Now more than anything, he needed something to keep his attention and focus. Something that he could figure out until Shiro returned and learning an ancient language seemed to fit the bill. If he never did manage to find Shiro, at least he’d have a budding career in being the only person alive who was able to translate Demotic.

                “I’d surely make millions,” he mumbled sarcastically, rolling his eyes and pulling the closest book to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are always appreciated and they help with my motivation. 
> 
> Let me know what you thought. 
> 
> my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> <3 MOLIM


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm back!! As you may have guessed, school has started up for me and I no longer have as much free time as I did. I think now that my first full week of classes is over things will start to slow down and I'll develop a routine where I can have more time to write and will be able to update everything a little more quickly. 
> 
> I'm excited for this chapter because I get to introduce a little more mythology and things start to get a bit more intense. I'm not sure how long we have to go until Shiro shows up, but we're definitely getting there so maybe only a few more chapters. 
> 
> Thanks for being patient with me. :D
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith looked blearily out the window at the lightening sky. Without meaning to, he’d worked all night on the increasingly infuriating language that was Demotic. He could tell that he was improving so that was at least something to keep him motivated. Weirdly enough, the first few characters that he’d translated so far had been numbers. He didn’t have all of them yet, but it looked like a date. Keith didn’t want to get his hopes up, and the whole scenario was a little unnerving, but it looked as though the writing was pointing to a day that was several months into the future.

                Pushing his things aside, Keith stood from his spot on the couch and moved over to the window. It’d been about a week since he met Katie and she was supposed to be emailing him with an update soon. If she didn’t have any new information from her time in the Garrison, he could at least update her on his progress with decoding the writing. He was honestly surprised by how strict and busy the schedule was at the training facility. Katie seemed to be adjusting quite easily, though.

                Keith turned away from the rising sun and back to the table strewn with books. He marked the pages that he left off at and carried his notes over to the computer. Knowing that as soon as he finished this he would finally let himself get some much needed sleep, he carefully input all of his information from the night before and made notes of how much he’d improved. After successfully archiving his work, Keith stored all of his books and papers underneath one of the floorboards in the corner.

                Some people would think that he was being paranoid, but he’d rather not get locked up for the work he was doing. There was no telling what lengths the Garrison would go to and he wouldn’t put it past them to falsify documents in order to either search his house or get him arrested. Finally as satisfied as he could be, Keith trudged up the stairs to his bedroom. He stripped down to his pants and shirt and crawled underneath the bed covers, sighing in contentment as the warmth and soft comfort enveloped him.

                Keith squinted through the light that was pouring through his curtains and groaned. He rolled over onto his side and looked at the clock, seeing that he managed to get several hours of sleep at least and that it was early in the afternoon. He pushed himself out of bed and stretched. Feeling a little gross, he walked into the bathroom and started the water so he could take a shower. Keith stripped himself of the rest of his clothes and stepped under the warm spray, enjoying the feeling of the water cascading over his skin and washing some of the grime away that’d built up over the past couple of days.

                He scrubbed lethargically, not in any sort of hurry and allowed the warm water to wash the soap down the drain. He shut the water off and grabbed the towel that was hanging on the towel rack and toweled himself dry as best he could. Keith dressed quickly and left his towel to dry. He walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, intent on making himself something to eat. He put together a sandwich and ate while he leaned up against the counter.

                After finishing his meal, Keith left his dishes in the sink and headed towards the front door. He walked around the edge of his house and climbed onto his hoverbike. He started the engine and pointed himself towards town, starting the easy ride over the planes of sand and rock.

                The center of town was far busier than it had been the other times Keith had travelled there, but all of those instances had been early in the morning before a large number of people had been up. He parked in the public parking area and walked down the street towards the references store. It’d been a while since he’d seen Vic and Keith had been meaning to stop in and see how he was doing. He pushed through the front door and found the elderly man seated behind the counter as he always was.

                “Keith! Haven’t seen you in a while. What brings you by?” he asked, grin spreading across his face.

                “Afternoon, Vic. I just came by to see how you were doing. I know I haven’t been around in the past week, but learning Demotic has been keeping me pretty busy.”

                “Well pull up a chair! I’ll go grab something to drink and we can have a chat.” Before Keith could tell him that drinks weren’t necessary, Vic was up and out of his chair and through the door behind the counter.

                Shaking his head in amusement, he pulled the stool that had been left at the front of the store in front of the counter and took a seat. As he waited, he looked around at the various maps and drawings that were hung on the walls. He’d never really taken the time to look at what had been put up, but it wasn’t surprising how contradicting the posters were. Vic had put up both old and new maps alike as well as copies of paintings or images detailing important historical events.

                Vic returned with a pitcher of iced tea and two glasses. He set it down between them and poured a glass for Keith and himself. “So Demotic’s keeping you busy, huh?” he asked, settling back down onto his chair.

                Keith sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Vic, you have no idea. I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but I don’t think I had any idea of exactly what I was getting myself into. I’ve been doing nothing but work on the language for the past week. My sleeping schedule is all out of whack and I’ve become more of a night owl than anything else.”

                “Have you made any progress?” he asked with a chuckle.

                Keith narrowed his eyes. “It’s not funny, Vic!” He tried to glare at the older man, but couldn’t keep the harsh expression on his face as Vic continued to laugh. “I’ve made a little bit of progress. I have a few numbers translated, but they’re not consecutive so I don’t know what it’s trying to say. I do think that it’s a date though so that’s something at least.”

                Vic took a sip of his tea and mulled over the information. “If it points to a historical event that could give you another starting place. Something to look for at least since we know nothing about the people who lived in those cliff dwellings.”

                Keith hummed noncommittally. He didn’t want to reveal that he thought it pointed to a date later that year. He wanted to trust Vic, he really did. But he couldn’t deny that it would sound pretty strange that he was translating a prediction of some sort. Keith would only have to say the wrong thing and Vic would be calling the government about the guy who miraculously reappeared after months and who doesn’t remember a thing and suddenly thinks that he has a clue to what’s going to happen in the future. He’d sound real sane.

                “Adrasteia,” he said, suddenly, eyes widening.

                “Excuse me?” Vic asked, brows furrowed.

                Keith set down his glass excitedly. “I forgot about this! Adrasteia. I…found the word while I was doing more research and didn’t know what it meant. Do you happen to know the significance of it?”

                Vic set his glass to the side and intertwined his own fingers. He stared down at them making Keith think that he just asked something he shouldn’t have. “Adrasteia. Not a word. A name. It means ‘one from whom there is no escape.’”

                Keith felt shivers threaten to run up his spine from the implications.

                “Most of the stories surrounding her are modest. She nurtured Zeus as an infant in a secret cave in order to protect him from his father. She is also thought to defend the righteous and is associated with childbirth in some cases. But there’s a darker side of Adrasteia that exists. She was an epithet of the Great Goddess Nemesis. Now Nemesis translates to ‘inescapable.’ Both Adrasteia and Nemesis were thought to deal with the dispensation of rewards and punishments. And Nemesis was the spirit of divine retribution against those who succumb to hubris, or arrogance before the Gods.

                “What you have to understand is that Nemesis was highly respected, but she was also greatly feared. She often cursed those who were blessed with countless gifts because they were rewarded too many good things in life. She was the Goddess who lured Narcissus to a pool of water and made him fall in love with his own image so that he was unable to leave the pool and ended up dying there. For whatever reason you found that name, I can guarantee that it’s not a good one and you should stay far away from it, Keith.”

                Keith stared at Vic and felt as though a lead weight had been dropped into his stomach. His throat felt tight and if something as simple as a name could take away Vic’s happy demeanor, then he was really worried about what the government was doing naming a protocol after her. He just hoped that whatever Katie found out about the protocol, she would be incredibly careful and prevent herself from being detected. If it was this serious, he figured the government would go to any lengths to protect its secrets.

                Keith took a shaky breath and forced a smile on his face that felt too forced and strained. “Well, I can honestly say I wasn’t expecting that sort of explanation. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I had no idea.”

                Vic nodded and continued to study him. “For you to come upon that specific name…just what exactly is it that you’re looking into, Keith?”

                He shook his head and pushed himself off of his stool. “I’m just a guy who’s trying to learn Demotic and understand exactly who I am and where I come from. There’s nothing else to it.” He walked over to the door and paused with his hand on the doorknob. “It was nice seeing you again, Vic. I’ll stop by again soon if you’ll have me.”

                Vic just nodded and continued to study him. Swallowing thickly, Keith opened the door and walked out into the bright sunlight.

                The crowded and light atmosphere was in stark contrast to the one he’d just left. It was unexpected and he felt as though his whole world had just been both upended and threatened at the same time. It wasn’t good to have Vic start questioning him. He’d been more than helpful enough so far and the last thing he needed was someone else looking into him or reporting him to the Garrison.

                Keith took a steadying breath and headed back to his bike. A few people gave him curious glances along the way, but he studiously ignored them. He was sort of used to it by now and was beyond caring if other people were finding him strange or questioning his being there. As he threw a leg over his seat he just hoped that when he got back he would have a message from Katie and that she was staying safe. As much as they both wanted answers, all of their work wouldn’t be worth it if it put them in a life-threatening situation.

                He tried to find something to focus on during the ride back to his home in order to lift his mood, but found that no matter what he tried to focus on, his thoughts somehow always managed to turn dark or go back to the conversation that he had with Vic. Keith thought that as soon as he got home, things were certain to lighten up, but how wrong he was. As the shack popped into view on the horizon everything seemed normal and he thought it _was_ normal. Until he pulled up outside and saw his front door banging against the doorjamb from the wind.

                For the second time that day, Keith experienced a sinking feeling in his stomach. He carefully parked his bike next to the shack and slowly stepped down. Each step that he took felt like a chasm that he was having to cross in order to reach his destination. The walk was slow and by the time he reached his front door, he pushed it open with shaking hands. The sight that he was met with nearly brought Keith to his knees.

                His entire living room was utterly wrecked. His couch had been shoved aside and the table overturned. All of Keith’s pictures and print-outs had been ripped from the bulletin board and torn apart, leaving shreds of paper to cover the floor. His computer had been pulled away from the wall and was still powered up.

                Keith sank to his knees in front of the monitor and started moving through his files. He had no idea how much they’d seen, but he suspected that if they found what they were looking for, then it would’ve been erased. He had to try logging into his encrypted files several times before he was successful since he was so stressed and nervous and kept hitting the wrong keys. Keith buried his face in his hands and breathed a sigh of relief when all of his files seemed to be there and intact.

                A borderline maniacal laugh bubbled up and rang out harshly in the quiet and false calm that enveloped the shack. Once he was able to collect himself, he opened up his email and was happy to see that Katie had sent him an update that day. The fact that it was still there reassured him that they didn’t know about his email or weren’t able to access it. He had finally given in and changed his password according to Katie’s specifications anyway.

                Keith pushed himself to his feet and walked over to the front door that was still hanging open. He looked out onto the horizon, almost willing some clue to appear as to who exactly had been here even if he did have an idea, but he knew that they were long gone. He sighed and shut the door, sliding the locks into place before moving to the corner of the room. Keith righted the coffee table and slid the couch back into place, pulling the curtains closed during the process. He carefully knelt down in the corner and pulled the loose floorboard from its spot.

                All of his books were still there. Whoever had come was obviously looking for some sort of evidence to use against him or figure out what he was doing. Keith was incredibly thankful for the precautions that he’d taken and he owed Katie a huge favor after this. He was glad that they hadn’t found anything incriminating. He was certain that they wouldn’t try to arrest him for having a few pictures and a star map pinned up. There weren’t any explanations as to what they meant anyway and they’d have no idea where to find the locations he’d photographed.

                Keith finally felt comfortable enough to sit down and read the email that Katie had sent him. Even if she didn’t have any new information, it would be nice to hear from her. When she’d first started at the Garrison, she’d told him about her team assignments and that she’d been paired with two guys, Hunk and Lance. Lance apparently came off a little brash and he could grate on a person’s nerves when he really got going, but she said he was really a good guy and really cared about people. Keith also learned that Hunk was a pretty incredible engineer and loved learning new things or figuring out how things worked.

                Feeling slightly better after the events that the day had brought, and knowing that he would have to pass on the new information about Adrasteia, he clicked on her message, and promptly felt the bottom of his stomach drop out yet again. Katie had updates for him. Major updates that reinforced Keith’s earlier speculations about how this protocol couldn’t be anything good if the namesake was being considered. His eyes scanned over her words, taking them in and fueling his growing sense of horror.

                Keith never would’ve believed it if he wasn’t reading government documentation and reports. Protocol Adrasteia was a complete government cover-up designed to neutralize the alien threat that existed. There were two alien species that had made a home for themselves on Earth thousands of years ago, that exact date being uncertain. The races were Altean and Galran and lived both by themselves and in a mixed state creating a community of half-Galran and half-Altean people.

                Their existence among Earthlings was peaceful for many years and they witnessed the rise and fall of many empires and were known to have been involved during those and other historical events, refusing to entirely isolate themselves even if they often made homes for themselves in cliff-dwellings. Once the government became aware of the alien races among them, they began to question the populations as to why they had come there and what they were planning on doing. Explanations of some ‘war’ were offered and a guarantee could not be given that it would not spread to Earth now that those populations were living there.

                In order to prevent the war from coming, the government began to collect and search for known alien communities around the world. One such community was found among the planes and their cliff-dwellings were discovered although not marked in history books or local culture. The aliens who refused to come civilly or caused unrest were executed by government officials. The search still continues and the government is always on the lookout for humans, or assumed humans, who may be looking into possible connections to the alien races and their presence on Earth.

                The humans who were looking too deeply into the events went missing, thereby signifying the Garrison’s assimilation to the protocol’s name and punishing those who showed arrogance towards the government and spoke out against it.

                Keith’s blood ran cold. His pictures. If they started to question what he was doing any more than they already were then he was in danger. He was in so much danger and he needed to tell Katie. She was at just as much risk accessing this information and if they caught her now…he didn’t even want to think about the consequences. He couldn’t even begin to grasp how many families had been ripped apart. How many innocent people had been taken from their lives or killed or locked up. What exactly was the extent or scope of those affected by this protocol? Glancing over his shoulder with a sense of unease, Keith began typing out his reply to Katie, hoping that they would continue to get lucky and avoid the wraith of the Garrison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated and loved! I respond to everyone's comments. 
> 
> Here's my tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> And it you'd like to learn more about what I introduced in this chapter:
> 
> Adrasteia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrasteia
> 
> Nemesis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nemesis_(mythology)


	11. Email Interim 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So bit of a short update. I know it sucks since y'all only get an update about once a month, but this will help get future events going, I promise. Life has been crazy here, but when is it not? Things are going well for me though and just try to be patient with me as we get to the point when it's time for Shiro to show up. 
> 
> Cheers! 
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                _Katie,_

_If we get caught knowing this information, we’re going to be in some serious shit. I don’t think that it’s wise to try and dig any deeper than you already have unless you can ensure your safety. No matter how important finding your family is, and I know it is, and how important finding out what’s up with my past is important to me, we can’t risk getting caught. If the government knows that we’re looking into this, we’re going to be the next people on their list. We’ll really disappear this time and there’s not going to be anyone to save us or prevent our identities from being completely erased._

_This afternoon I went to visit Vic at the References store. He’s helped me get a lot of the information that I’ve gathered so far and got me on the path to learning Demotic so that I can translate what I found in the caves and figure out what’s going on. I asked him about Adrasteia to see if he knew anything about it and his demeanor completely changed. There’s a large amount of mythology surrounding the name and none of it is good. There’s references to revenge and punishment for going against the Gods and I’m worried that they might be taking the name to mean people going against the government and their plans._

_I tried to brush it off as best as I could that I simply stumbled upon the name while doing research and it didn’t have anything to do with what I was translating or researching, but I’m not sure that I completely convinced him of that point. I really hope that he doesn’t report his suspicions to anyone else because I can’t really do with more government eyes on me than there already are after I just showed up out of nowhere. Although, when you really think about it, the more eyes that are on me, the less eyes are on you which means you can get more information on everything that’s happening._

_I know that the government suspects something is going on with me and I’m really glad that you were here to back up my computer and encrypt my files. When I got back from town today, someone had broken into my house. The reason that I know it’s the government is because none of my personal belongings were gone. Everything had been pushed around and looked through-they didn’t find where I kept some of my written documents underneath the floorboard-and all of the pictures and maps that were pinned to my board were ripped apart._

_They tried finding my files, but that obviously didn’t happen thanks to you. I think this might keep them from coming back for a while and I won’t have to worry about another attack, but I’m sure they won’t stay away forever. I’m just hoping that I can get the Demotic translated or almost completely translated by the time they decide to show up again. Then we might be able to make some more headway or I can get the hell out of here and go find somewhere else to hide out in the desert._

_Let me know how things are going at the Garrison. If I’m right, things aren’t going to stay the same way they are for long._

_Keith_

* * *

 

_Keith,_

_I bet you’re really happy that I encrypted your computer for you now, huh? But all joking aside, this is really serious. If they continue to think that you’re looking into them and know things about government protocol, then you could can into some real trouble. Stay under the radar and limit your visits to the city and your visits to Vic. There’s a chance that the Garrison could’ve already approached him and gotten information. We don’t need him leaking anything else even if you consider something you say to be miniscule and unimportant. Odds are the people keeping an eye on you are going to read into everything that they hear and there’s not getting out of that once suspicion has been set._

_Everything’s fine on my end. I only hacked into their files one other time and didn’t find anything new with reference to Adrasteia or the aliens. I’m going to lie low for a while, but my next target is the scientific reports and files. Trust me, they don’t suspect anything from me. They have no idea that I might be who I actually am or related to my Father and brother._

_My studies are progressing as they should. Lance can be a bit annoying at times, but Hunk’s a nice guy. He really knows his engineering and has the best grades in that class. I’m lucky to be paired with him. Lance could use some work on his flying. We haven’t beaten the simulator once, unfortunately. I think that we can do it once Lance puts the entirety of his efforts into his work and gets focused. I know he wants to have fun and it’s all part of an adventure for him, but one day this isn’t going to be all harmless computer simulators and textbook studies. There’s real danger out there and I don’t think he’s grasped that yet._

_Focus on your studies and I’ll talk to you soon._

_KT_

* * *

 

_Katie,_

_Yeah, yeah, I’m working on my studies, no need to get all snarky. Yes, thank you for encrypting my computer and helping out with that. I would’ve been royally fucked over if we hadn’t met. I haven’t had any more incidents recently. No visits and I’ve kept a low profile. There’s been nothing that I’ve needed in town so I had no reason to stop by and see Vic. He might get a little suspicious by my longer absence, which might make the government suspicious if he’s talking to them, but I’ve got plausible deniability. It seems like there’s no winning with them anyway._

_How are things going with your team? Has Lance gotten any better with his training? If I could come pay a visit without getting you in trouble, I’d come kick his ass for you and tell him to get his shit together. We don’t want you failing out or anything._

_I’m constantly improving with my Demotic studies. It’s not going fast which would be pretty unrealistic, but I am making progress. I think I might actually be getting sort of close to cracking whatever was written. It’s definitely pointing to a date-and a date in the future at that. I just need the rest of the translation to figure out what exactly is going to happen on this date. And if I can be prepared for it, whatever it is._

_Keep me posted._

_Keith_

* * *

 

_Keith,_

_I know that it’s been a while since I’ve written to you, but not much has happened here. Lance is still being Lance and as hilarious as it would be for you to show up here and kick his ass (which you probably could do in all honesty) we both know that’s out of the question._

_I do have some new information for you. There’s a whole science branch that’s been buried so deep in the government’s data bases that I almost missed it. The branch is tasked with evaluating and studying the aliens that have been captured. You have no idea what kinds of tests they’ve done and I don’t even want to try and copy all of the information down in an email. Maybe if I ever manage to get a day off or something I can pay you a visit and let you know what’s going on, but I can say that it’s not pretty by any means. It’s violent and disgusting and horrible. I don’t understand how these people can be so removed from what they’re doing. It’s obvious that these aliens weren’t causing us humans any harm!_

_It’s sickening. One good thing, or at least I hope it’s a good thing, came out of my research and breach into their files. In the beginning they had scientists collecting signals from space to try and evaluate what the threat level was like from the aliens. Since they were afraid of an attack or a war being brought to Earth, scientists collected a large amount of data to catch any possible radio transmissions or attack before it occurred. Obviously that never happened since we’re all still alive and well._

_What I’m hoping to do is pick up where they left off. Maybe I can catch wind of some frequencies that don’t necessarily relay threats, but give proof that there is life nearby. That could give us the key to come into contact with someone and find out where my family and Shiro are. I’ve actually already build the equipment from the junk that’s left around in the engineering and robotics classes and have collected data samples a few nights this week._

_I’m hoping that once you get the Demotic cracked we might have an idea of where in the universe to look._

_Good luck to us both._

_KT_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always loved and appreciated! 
> 
> You can find me on tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not too much happens this chapter, but we're getting there!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith stared down at the notebook in front of him and had to remind himself that he needed to breathe. Breathing was essential to life and a necessity, and for some reason that was currently escaping him, he wasn’t doing it.

                Keith slammed a hand into his chest, forcing himself to cough and suck in some much needed air. He’d done it. Somehow and by some miracle, _he’d done it._ He felt giddy. He felt like he could honestly do anything. He felt invincible. He felt-fuck he needed to email Katie. He looked down at his notebook and checked the date with the one on his calendar. A week. Only a week. How could it possibly be so soon?

                He scrambled over to his computer and pulled up his email and began to type.

 

                _Katie,_

_I’ve done it. I’ve finally managed to crack the writing from the cave walls! I honestly can’t even believe it. It’s taken so long, but it’s done. I was right about it being a date. A date that’s only a week away. Next Monday something big is going to happen. It’s not specific by any means but it points towards an arrival. It doesn’t say what’s arriving, but at this point I think it could either be a group of people or some meteor-like a doomsday prophecy._

_I don’t actually think it’s foretelling the end of the world, but I do know that something is coming and we need to be prepared. I’m sure that the Garrison will send out a team to intercept whatever this is when it lands. I’m going to be ready to face them. It’s going to take some work and I’ll need a lot of equipment in case things go wrong, but I’m not about to let those bastards take this from me._

_I know that you’ll be inside the barracks and probably won’t be able to get out to see what this is or help me, but I’ll send a report your way after everything’s done. Don’t get caught over the next few days. Depending on what arrives, I may have to come break you out of there and I don’t want to have to fight a bunch of armed guards to get to your cell._

_Stay safe._

_Keith._

                Keith hit send and gathered up all of the materials that were scattered across his table. He shoved them back underneath the floorboard in the corner and grabbed his notebook and a pen before settling down on the couch. If he was going to take on the Garrison he was going to need a plan. And some supplies.

                The arrival point was a few miles west of the Garrison which meant Keith would have a much larger distance to cover to get back to the shack and to safety. Even then, if they knew who had attacked them, he probably wouldn’t have much time in general. He felt that he was strong enough in hand-to-hand combat to hold his own against the other officers and military personnel that would get there so that wasn’t a problem. He also had his knife and didn’t think he’d need any other supplies when rescuing whatever was set to arrive.

                He tapped his pen against the paper trying to think of what he might need. The only diversion that would probably be big enough to draw away most of the officers would be an explosion. But what exactly was out there that Keith could blow up? His pen paused mid-tap for a split second before he was throwing it aside and scrambling to his feet. He hurried over to the front door and forced his feet into his boots as quickly as they would allow.

                He ran back to the couch to grab his jacket and the notebook and pen before rushing out the door. He stuffed his supplies in his belt before grabbing his keys to his bike from the other pouch and vaulting into the seat. He started the engine and pointed himself in the direction of the Garrison, speeding off across the dunes and land.

                The ride was about as far as he expected it to be and helped him understand what sort of disadvantage he would be at when it came to the Garrison and their land rovers. He was pleased to find out that there were multiple cliffs and rock drop-offs that would be able to slow them down or stop them. Keith knew that he would have a slight advantage with his hoverbike when it came to crossing chasms, but he’d still have to be strategic in his movements to adequately throw off the pursuers he knew he was going to have.

                Keith parked his bike atop a hill that overlooked the surrounding plane where the arrival was supposed to happen. Most of it was open space, but there were two rock formations that broke up the flat land. There was a pair of rocks that were located closer to his perch and a cliff that was further off and would provide the perfect place to rig explosives and draw the Garrison away from whatever was coming. Mulling it over, he thought four or five explosions would do the trick.

                Nodding to himself, he swung his bike back around and headed back towards town. He knew there was an army surplus shop and a hardware store that he could find his supplies in. Keith wouldn’t be able to buy actual explosives in the store, but he knew enough to know what kinds of supplies that he would need.

                He looked up at the sky as he parked his bike and noticed the clouds rolling in. They didn’t often get storms, but when it decided to rain, boy did it _rain._ He hurried down the sidewalk past the other shoppers who were beginning to take notice of the weather and slipped into the hardware store. The store was pretty spacious and needed to be out of necessity since it was the only hardware place they had in town.

                Keith walked through the aisles and looked over the shelves for what he needed, pulling things here and there that would be useful as he rigged explosives for next week. He didn’t think that he would look too suspicious when he paid for his goods and he was keeping the number of explosives he used to a minimum anyway. He couldn’t look any creepier than one of those people who accidentally bought a very suspicious haul of rope, duct tape, and zip ties. He thankfully wasn’t _that_ person.

                Arms full of plastic containers, duct tape, and some wiring, he headed towards the front door where he set down what he was going to purchase. The cashier had a bored look on their face as they rang up everything on the counter.

                “That’ll be 73 credits.”

                Keith passed them the money and they sighed as they organized it in the register and handed him his change. As he returned the extra money to one of the pouches on his belt his purchases were bagged and shoved across the counter. He arched an eyebrow at the worker, but took them without comment, heading out the door. The wind had picked up and he hustled down the street to where the army surplus store was and a cleaning supplies store.

                He rushed through the two stores, opting to only pick up a few pieces of cloth from the former and some small bottles of chemical solutions from the latter. As he hurried back up the street to where he’d left his bike parked, the clouds above him opened and let a few rain drops through.

                Keith shoved the bags underneath the seat of his bike and slammed it back down, hopping on and revving the engine as the rain slowly became heavier. He squinted through the water that was blowing into his face and urged his bike faster, tearing across the sand that was become quickly saturated with water. Pools deepened and water flowed and Keith flew.

                Just as it was turning into an all-out downpour, his shack came into sight. He breathed a sigh of relief and parked next to the shed, grabbing the bags from under the seat and running into the house. He slammed the door shut behind him and sagged against it, glad to be out of the storm. Keith toed off his boots and carried the bags into the living room. He headed towards the stairs and locked his front door on the way.

                He turned on the water in his shower to let it warm up and pulled off his soaked clothes, hanging them on the hooks on the back of his bedroom door to dry. Naked and wet, Keith shivered and hurried into the bathroom, stepping under the scalding water to warm himself. He sighed happily before reaching for his shampoo to start washing.

                Keith stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist. Feeling much more comfortable and content, he walked out of the bathroom and over to his dresser to get some clean clothes. He dressed quickly to the pounding of rain on his rooftop and headed back downstairs to start working on his newest project.

                The rain provided a pleasant backdrop and white noise as he got to work with the chemicals, wires, and containers. The construction of the bomb was pretty simple and didn’t require much forethought, but still needed careful handling with the types of chemicals that he was working with. It wasn’t a bad way to spend an afternoon, in some really strange and sort of messed up way.

                After finishing the four explosives, Keith set them in the corner of his living room and gently laid a tarp over the top of them so that they would remain concealed in case anyone decided to come knocking. He wouldn’t be able to do anything if someone broke into his house, but he didn’t plan on going out until next week. He was so close to his goal and wasn’t about to let this only opportunity slip through his fingers simply because he got careless.

                He looked around his home and felt strange without anything to do. He didn’t have to translate anything or build anything. What did he even do with his free time? Did he have any hobbies? Honestly, it was weird to think about. For so many months he’d been doing nothing but working towards this singular goal and now that it was finally here, where did that leave him?

                Keith didn’t have any more of his memories back. He didn’t have a job, not that he was lacking in credits or anything. He still hadn’t met Shiro, but that was coming within the next week. Or so he hoped. Katie had her own things to deal with and couldn’t exactly sneak out of the Garrison to come and hang out with him. She probably didn’t even have any free time to check her email yet since it’d only been a few hours since he sent it.

                Keith huffed and pulled a book from his bookshelf. One of the few that wasn’t focused on engineering or seemed to be an old textbook. It was a battered paperback that had obviously been read many times over. He sat down on the couch and threw his legs up, settling back against the arm rest. He propped the edge of the spine of the book on his stomach and opened to the first page, settling back to read as the rain continued outside.

                He groaned and opened his eyes slowly. He’d fallen asleep after reading several pages. The book had fallen to the floor and flipped closed. Keith rubbed the sleep from his eyes and sat up, stretching his arms over his head. He looked out the window and saw that the rain had stopped and that the Sun had almost set. He picked his book up from the floor and set it on the coffee table before standing and walking into the kitchen.

                He looked through his cabinets and pulled a boxed meal from the cabinets. Keith read over the directions as he filled a pot with water and set it on the stove to start boiling. He ripped open the cardboard and poured the contents into the pot and sat back to wait.

                After his food was finished cooking, he fished a bowl out of the cabinet and poured his food from the pot into it and grabbed a fork for the pasta. He sat down at the table to eat and found the quiet after the rain earlier that day peaceful, if slightly unnerving since it was so quiet. Uncomfortable in the kitchen, Keith picked up his bowl of food and moved back into his living room. He sat down on the floor in front of his computer and pulled up his email, surprised to have gotten a reply from Katie already.

 

                _Keith,_

_That’s fantastic! And to think that it’s happening next week. There’s so much to do in advance and to prepare for this. Can you send me the coordinates for the arrival? I don’t know if I’ll be able to be there when it happens, but I’m hoping to at least make my way up to the roof as I usually do to collect my research._

_I actually have some findings that I think you’ll be interested in. I’ve collected a large number of radio signals and galactic communication. It’s taken some time, but after comparing it to the reports that were gathered by the first scientists collecting this data, I managed to crack what they were saying. There’s a lot of talk going around about this thing called Voltron. I don’t what it is exactly, but I think that this thing could either be what’s coming next week or the arrival is what is going to lead to Voltron rising up again._

_Regardless of whatever that means, I also think that it’s going to mark Shiro’s return. And hopefully the return of my family. Things are about to change. I’m not sure in what way, but I know that they’re going to change. And we have to be ready for it._

_I’ll try to keep Lance and Hunk out of it, but Lance can be a bit thick-headed when it comes to something that he’s interested in. He really looked up to you guys so I don’t think that if he knows you’re involved, he let things go easily. Hunk would be a little more reluctant, but he’s friends with both of us and is a really good friend._

_What are you hoping to do now that you know something’s coming? How do you plan to meet it? And what about the Garrison? I obviously don’t know where it’s going to land, but what are you planning to do? As soon as it touches down, you know the Garrison’s going to send out land units if it’s close and air dispatch to take care of it and set up a quarantine perimeter._

_Write back as soon as you can, Keith. A lot’s going to have to happen before Monday._

_KT._

                Keith sat down in front of the keys and opened up a reply.

               

                _Katie,_

_The arrival point is about two miles west of the Garrison. You’ll be able to easily see it when it touches down. I’m working on making preparations for whatever’s coming. I’m planning on rigging some explosives to a rock face about another mile away from the landing sight. It should be enough of a distraction for me to get in and out for whoever or whatever is coming._

_It won’t get the researchers out of the quarantine tent, but the guards outside of it should be drawn away to see what’s going on. They’ll obviously be worried about another threat and would want to neutralize it as soon as possible._

_I agree that I think this is going to mean the arrival of Shiro. I just hope that he’ll be willing to get out of there because I don’t think the Garrison is going to be very cooperative when it comes to his mysterious arrival back on Earth. Hell, they weren’t very accommodating to me and I’m just missing some of my memories._

_I don’t know anything about this Voltron thing, but there was a mention about something else. Some sort of blue lion. I’m not sure what that means, but it could prove to be useful information later on. Maybe Shiro will have some answers for us._

_I don’t want your friends to be put in danger. I’d rather not put you in harm’s way either, but your family is involved and you deserve to either know what happened to them or find them again so they can be brought home. If they insist, I’m not going to get physical and I have no jurisdiction over them so we’ll have to deal with their bull-headedness._

_I’ll see you next week. Hopefully. When all of this can hopefully be resolved once and for all._

_Keith._

                He sat back and looked over his email. This was as good as it was going to get. This was real. The months of prep work and research that he’d put into this and he was finally going to get some answers. He just hoped those answers didn’t come at too high of a cost. And what kinds of sacrifices he might be asked to make.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated! 
> 
> my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know a lot of you have been waiting so long for this chapter and it's finally time! TIME FOR SHIRO AND KEITH TO MEET AGAIN!!! So I'll stop babbling and we can get on with the chapter. 
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith jolted awake a week after he’d first cracked the code for the blue lion and the arrival that was supposed to happen that night. He swallowed several times, convinced that he was going to throw up or pass out or something. He sat up against the headboard and rubbed his hands across his face roughly, trying to even out his heartbeat and calm himself down for what was to come later that night.

                Slowly, he pushed the covers off of his body and climbed off the side of the bed. He walked over to his dresser and pulled out his clothes, setting them on top of the piece of furniture before pulling off his pajamas and returning them to the drawer until he needed them again. Once he was dressed he made his bed slowly, smoothing down the wrinkles from the sheets. Normally he would just leave the bed as it was, but he needed something to occupy himself. He had a long, well not really long, he’d slept in later than he usually would, but he had a day ahead of him before he would be able to do anything productive and knew that he would need as many distractions as possible, no matter how mundane they were.

                Keith headed downstairs and glimpsed out the window as he walked into the kitchen, seeing that the Sun was already high in the sky and the day had begun. He looked around at the cabinets around him trying to think of something that he wouldn’t mind eating, but nothing sounded good enough to even want to put in his stomach. He finally settled on making some toast since it was something light and carried it into his living room with him. He sat down on the couch and dug into his breakfast, taking small, careful bites so as not to upset himself so much that he got sick.

                Once he was done eating, he brought his dishes back into the kitchen and washed them immediately. Keith left them in the drain board to dry and walked back into the living room, taking a seat on the couch once again. It wasn’t long before he forced himself off the couch and back into the kitchen to dry his plate and replace it in the cabinet, needing something to do. He rubbed his hands on his pants as he walked back through his house once again.

                He was up and down from the couch and had made several laps around his makeshift coffee table before he finally sat down at his computer to try and distract himself. He checked all of the programs and records on his computer to make sure that they were still secure-which they were. He checked his email which was frustratingly empty and settled on shutting down the equipment once again. He got up and started pacing around the room once again. The hours that needed to pass by before he could head out to the arrival site were going to be long and arduous. He pulled at his hair and groaned, hoping this day would be over mercifully quickly.

                Keith nearly sprinted out the door when it was finally getting close to the sun going down, bag loaded with explosives hanging from his arm. He ran into the shed next to his shack and grabbed a piece of purple cloth and the knife that was sitting on the worktable next to his keys. He hurried over to his hovercraft and shoved the bag of explosives underneath the seat before climbing on. He shoved the key into the ignition and turned it, bringing his bike to life and immediately turning towards the arrival point that he’d mapped out the day before.

                He hurried over the desert and made his way as quickly as possible across the dunes and ridges towards the small outcropping near the arrival point. He slowed down and pulled up next to the rock formations, easily spotting a trail that seemed to lead up each cliff. He shoved his keys into one of the pouches on his belt and grabbed the bag from underneath the seat before hurrying up the trail.

                He felt his heart beating wildly in his chest from both the physical exertion as well as the excitement and nervousness for what was to come. He slowed to a stop about halfway up and got to work rigging the explosive into the rock. Once he was satisfied and had armed the device to respond to his wireless detonator, he hurried back down to the ground before repeating the process three more times.

                Once he’d finished with the last explosive, Keith sprinted back down and hopped onto his bike. He started it and moved to a rock formation on the opposite side of the plain where he could conceal himself easily from the Garrison and wouldn’t be spotted when they went to investigate the explosives when they went off. He turned off his bike and settled down to wait, feeling the nerves bubbling up inside of him.

                He began to have doubts that he was somehow wrong about this whole arrival and there wouldn’t be anything coming. He looked up as the sky got darker and darker now that the sun was setting and chewed on his lip. He didn’t want to be wrong. He wanted this to be the breakthrough that he needed to move forward. He wanted this to change things.

                Keith sat tensely on his bike and gripped the handles. A flash above his head caught his attention and he looked up to find an object streaking down through the atmosphere toward him. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened. It came down sharply above his head and crashed several hundred feet away. He felt a grin pull at his lips and had to force himself to sit back and wait for the Garrison crew that he knew was on its way. There was no way that they’d missed that entrance.

                Soon enough he heard the loud engines of the rovers coming closer and climbed down from his bike to look around the edge of the rock. He saw the rovers surrounding the ship that was still smoking from its entrance through the Earth’s atmosphere. A group hurried to begin setting up the quarantine tent as another approached the ship slowly, weapons drawn and movements hesitant.

                Keith’s brow furrowed as the top of the ship popped open, letting out a rush of steam that blocked his view. He willed the air to clear so that he could get a better view, but all he was able to make out were the faint signs of a struggle. He huffed in frustration as they carried someone through the now erected entrance to the quarantine station. The door shut behind them and he watched as they loaded the ship onto a truck bed for what he assumed would be transportation back to the Garrison.

                A glint caught his eye and he looked towards the top of a cliff grouping and saw three distant figures perched on top of the rock. He squinted, trying to make out who was sitting up there watching this, but was unable to make out their physical features. Ignoring them for the moment and suspecting that they weren’t Garrison officials since they were staying in the shadows, Keith pulled the detonator from his pocket and placed his thumb over the button. His eyes flitted over every inch of the area, knowing that the longer he waited, the harder it would be to get inside.

                He pressed the button and listened as the explosions rocked the cliffs behind him. The officials standing around outside of the quarantine tent immediately took noticed and rushed to their rovers. Keith hopped on his bike and revved the engine, immediately taking off across the plains. He reached a small boulder near the tent and left his bike behind it. Peeking around the corner, he surveyed the area around the tent quickly, finding the space clear.

                Keith raced forward and pushed his way through the tent entrance. He found himself in a long hallway and hurried towards the door at the end that would lead to the containment chamber. He waited as it slid open and he came face to face with three officials and a man strapped to a metal table.

                “Hey,” one of them called as they all rushed toward him.

                Keith fell back comfortably into his defensive stance and raised his fists. He sent the first one flying into one of the large pieces of medical equipment. He kicked the second one across the table that held smaller pieces of handheld equipment and knocked the last one out with a left hook that forced him back onto the metal examination table which knocked him unconscious.

                He jumped over their prone forms and hurried over to the man that was lying on the table, pulling down the cloth that had been used to cover his neck. He gripped the man’s chin and turned his face towards him, noticing the scar across his nose and the white streak of hair protruding from the middle of his forehead.

“Shiro?” he asked. Keith stepped back as a wave of emotions washed through him and gripped at his head as spikes of pain radiated through his skull. Shaking himself out of his daze quickly and knowing that he had to get out of there, he pulled the knife from his belt and cut through the leather straps quickly. He replaced the knife and pulled one of the man’s arms around his shoulder and hauled him off the medical table.

“Nope. No you-nope. No, no, no, no, no you don’t. I’m saving Shiro,” a voice rang out. Keith looked up to find three figures standing in the doorway and wasn’t as surprised as he should have been to see Katie standing there. A brown-haired man wearing a green jacket stalked forward and pulled Shiro’s other arm around his shoulder.

“Who are you?” Keith asked, slightly irritated by the interruption.

“Who am I? Uh, the name’s Lance,” he replied haughtily.

Keith rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Let’s get going. The Garrison officials will be back soon.”

The two of them shuffled out of the containment area and back down the short hallway that they’d come through. The walk felt so much longer now that he had the additional weight of Shiro and he was getting nervous that they wouldn’t make it out in time. They shuffled out of the tent and towards where his bike was being kept. Katie and the other man stopped to check the horizon for the other officials.

“Oh man, they’re coming back and they do not look happy. We gotta go,” the other man said as he and Katie ran to join them at his bike.

Keith left Lance to take care of Shiro as he hopped on his bike to get it started.

“Uh, do you mind if we catch a ride with you?” the other man asked.

Keith ignored the question as he and Katie hopped on, helping Lance position Shiro on the bike so he wouldn’t fall off.

The lights of the Garrison rovers illuminated them and Keith turned quickly heading back off across the plains. He felt sweat begin to bead across his forehead, feeling the drag that the added people were having on his ability to fly quickly.

“Can’t this thing go any faster?” Lance asked.

“We could toss out some nonessential weight,” Keith answered, sarcastically.

“Oh right,” Lance said, looking around. “Alright, so that was an insult, I get it.”

“Big man, lean left,” Keith said, directing the last member of their group who was currently sitting on the tail of his bike. The shift in weight made them turn sharply and caused two of the rovers to collide behind them.

“Oh man, Mr. Harris just took out Professor Montgomery. No, no, he’s fine,” the man at the top of the bike said, watching the rovers behind them.

Keith spotted a cliff edge below them across a chasm and felt hope swell in his chest. It was still possible for them to avoid the rest of the rovers. “Big man, lean right,” he called behind him.

As they crossed the pass, he swerved sharply to the left to avoid colliding with the side of the rock face, certain that the edge of his bike’s tail was probably scratched from some sort of impact. One of the rovers rolled over, but the other one was staying on their tail.

“Guys, ht-t-t-t-t, is that a cliff up ahead?” the man on the back of the bike asked.

Keith grinned.

“Oh no-no-“ Lance began.

He leaned forward and revved the engine. “Yup,” he said and launched them off the edge of the cliff, leaving the rover to skid to a stop behind them. The bike quickly pointed downwards as the ground sped towards them.

“What are you doing? You’re going to kill us all!” Lance exclaimed amidst the screaming of everyone else.

“Shut up and trust me,” Keith said.

Just before they hit the ground, he adjusted his feet on the pedals and revved the engines, bringing the nose of his bike up and letting them fly off towards the shack across the desert.

He felt some of the adrenaline begin to wear off as the shack came into view and the distance was quickly covered. He navigated down next to the storage shed next to his shack and killed the engine, feeling completely drained of energy.

“Dude, this is where you live? It’s in the middle of nowhere!” Lance spoke up.

Keith shot him a withering look that had his mouth snapping shut. He turned his attention to Shiro. “Let’s just get him inside.” He climbed off the bike and allowed Katie to pass him Shiro as Lance and the other man climbed down off his bike. He pulled one of Shiro’s arms around his shoulder and Lance took his other side without being prompted. They shuffled around the shack and hobbled up the steps to the front door with the other two people following dutifully behind.

Keith shoved the front door open roughly, lacking the free hands necessary to do it carefully. “That way,” he said, directing Lance towards the stairs that would take them upstairs to the bedroom. “Feel free to make yourselves comfortable on the couch or wherever,” he called back to Katie and her friend.

Getting up to the second floor was a bigger struggle than getting Shiro through the front door. The staircase was narrow and between the three of them and Shiro’s broad build, they had to maneuver quite awkwardly up the stairs, doing some side-step shuffle and hop. He felt relieved when they made it to the top landing and through the bedroom doorway. The bed was still made from when he’d done it that morning.

Keith and Lance laid Shiro down on top of the comforter gently, pushing his body to the center of the bed and bringing his legs up onto the mattress.

“How long do you think it’ll be before he wakes up?” Lance whispered.

Keith crossed his arms and looked over the stranger that was currently occupying his bead. “No idea. I’d say a couple of hours. No use waiting up here, though. We’ll know when he wakes up.”

“Don’t you want to stay with him?” Lance asked, voice thick with disbelief.

Keith furrowed his brow. “Why would I? Staying here isn’t going to make him wake up any faster.”

Lance stared at him, mouth hanging open. He brushed it off and walked past him towards the staircase, walking heavily back down the stairs. He heard Lance follow after him soon enough and they walked into the living room where Katie was rifling through her backpack and the other man was standing in the corner looking around nervously.

“Mind introducing me to your friends?” Keith asked, raising an eyebrow at Katie.

“Sure thing!” Lance jumped in, obviously assuming the question was meant for him, and earned a small smile form Katie. “That’s Pidge. He’s our communications officer and the big guy’s Hunk.”

“Well, Pidge, Hunk, Lance, what were you three doing out in the middle of the desert tonight?”

Pidge gave him a sheepish look. “We saw that ship come down and wanted to come investigate.”

Keith shook his head and took a seat on the floor while Lance forced himself down on the couch between his friends. “Well going to investigate just got you booted from the Garrison. You certainly can’t go back to the Garrison now. Those rovers saw you clear as day.”

“What’re you going to do?” Katie, well Pidge, asked.

Keith shrugged. “Wait for Shiro to wake up and see what we can learn.”

“You can’t stay here forever. The Garrison’s going to come looking for you and him. You’re going to have to leave,” Pidge said, giving him a hard look.

“I know. I think I may have some idea of where to go though.” He sighed, heavily, his exhaustion pulling at him. “Any of you hungry?”

“Uh, yes. I mean…I wouldn’t mind a snack. That would be nice. If you wouldn’t mind,” Hunk said, looking at his friends sheepishly and apologetically.

“Sure thing, man. The sun’s probably doing to rise in a couple of hours anyway so it’s no problem. If you want to sleep or whatever, the floor’s yours.” Keith pushed himself to his feet and walked into the kitchen. He opened and closed cabinets looking for something that he could make for everyone. He didn’t have much in the way of snacks and decided to just make a large batch of pasta for everyone to share.

He pulled a large pot from the cabinet and the packages of pasta and sauce. He filled the pot with water and set it on the stove to begin boiling.

“Need any help?” a voice spoke up behind him.

He turned around to see Pidge standing in the doorway smiling at him. Keith grinned and started forward, meeting Pidge in the middle of the kitchen in an embrace.

“Hey, Katie.”

She shook her head. “Pidge is fine now.”

“Okay. Pidge. I think I’ve got the food covered but have a seat and we can talk,” he said, stepping back to the stove and pouring in the pasta.

She pulled out a chair and rested her chin in her hands. Keith could see the exhaustion in her features and knew that he probably didn’t look much better.

“Did you recognize him at all or remember anything?” she began, softly.

Keith paused in his stirring and stared down in the water. “Not entirely. I got this intense pain in my head. Like a headache or I was trying to remember something but couldn’t. It was weird, but other than that, I don’t remember anything about him.”

“I figured. Lance seemed a little confused when the two of you came back down. I think he was expecting a different reaction from you.”

“That seemed to be the case, but I can’t do anything about not remembering anything.”

Pidge hummed her agreement and the two descended into silence as she watched Keith cook.

Soon enough the food was done and passed around in bowls as everyone circled around the coffee table in the living room. Keith stared down at his food as the three friends talked around him and picked at the pasta that was in his bowl, not really feeling hungry. His eyelids kept drifting shut against his own volition. He sighed and was just about to announce that he was going to bed when a large crash sounded from upstairs.

The conversation ceased as their gazes snapped up to the ceiling. Slowly, Keith set his bowl on the table and pushed himself to his feet. He turned towards the door and started moving towards it cautiously. He’d almost reached the doorway when Shiro crashed, into view, legs wobbly, forcing him to lean heavily on the frame, and chest heaving. He looked around frantically, taking in Pidge, Lance, and Hunk before his eyes finally landed on Keith.

“Keith,” he choked out before rushing forward and pulling him close.

Keith’s protest was cut short as Shiro crashed their lips together. His eyes widened and he brought up a hand to push Shiro away. Shiro’s eyes roved over his face, expression obviously hurt and brows furrowed.

Keith stepped back and folded his arms across his chest self-consciously. “I think there’s been some sort of misunderstanding here.”

Shiro’s brow furrowed even more. “Wh-what do you mean?”

“I mean, I don’t even know you.”

“Don’t-don’t know me. Keith, baby…” Shiro said, reaching out hesitantly.

“If I might break in for a moment,” Pidge said stepping between them. Shiro turned to her. “Keith has a severe case of amnesia. He doesn’t remember practically anything about his life. He has no solid memories of you or the Kerberos mission.”

Keith felt his heart constrict as Shiro’s expression crumpled and his gaze focused on Keith. “You don’t remember?” he asked, sounding utterly broken.

Keith shook his head. “No. I’m sorry,” he whispered, curling in on himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated. 
> 
> Find me on Tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas, happy holidays, merry winter! Whether you're celebrating anything right now or not, here's an update from moi!
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Shiro stood there staring at Keith for a few moments before Pidge awkwardly cleared her throat.

                “Before we get around to asking more questions, I’m sure that Shiro would like to have a shower and get out of those clothes,” she said.

                “That would actually be really nice,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

                “I can show you where it is,” Keith said, hurrying up the stairs.

                Shiro sighed and followed after him, much less hurried now that he was beginning to reorient himself with the world around him.

                “The bathroom’s in there,” Keith said, pointing towards the door in his bedroom. “There should be clean towels and washcloths underneath the sink if you need them.” He walked over to the small dresser in the corner. “I have this extra set of clothes that might be able to fit you so you don’t have to wear that anymore.”

                Shiro took the offered clothes and looked over Keith’s face. “Thanks. I, uh, I won’t be long.”

                Keith nodded. “I’ll be downstairs with everyone else. Take all the time that you need.” He walked past him and hurried down the stairs to rejoin everyone else. He sighed as he sat down in the living room. Everyone was watching him carefully, no one daring to be the first to speak.

                It wasn’t until Shiro walked back into the room, hair slightly damp that conversation began again. He cleared his throat and looked around at all of them awkwardly.

                “Thanks for letting me use your shower. I know that you have some questions for me, but I’d just like to know how you knew to come save me last night when I crashed.”

                Keith pushed himself to his feet. “This,” he said pointing to the bulletin board on his wall that had all of his notes and photos on it.

                Shiro furrowed his brow. “What have you been working on?”

                “I can’t explain it really. When I woke up in the Garrison after showing back up on Earth, I just had this feeling. That I needed to find something, or someone. For some reason, I remembered your name. I found this area with a large number of cave markings and writing. It was eerie, really, how much information there was. Once I managed to translate the language, it pointed to an arrival. Of what, I didn’t now, but then you showed up.”

                Shiro furrowed his brow and turned to the rest of the group. “I should thank you all for getting me out.” He walked over to Lance and held out his hand.  
                He hesitated before taking Shiro’s metal arm in his own. “I’m Lance.”

                Shiro turned to Pidge and Hunk.

                “The nervous guy’s Hunk. I’m Pidge,” she said, taking Shiro’s hand. “Did anyone else from your crew make it out?”

                Shiro chanced a glance at Keith. “I’m not sure. I remember the mission and being captured, but after that it’s just bits and pieces,” he said with a sigh.

                “Yeah, sorry to interrupt,” Hunk broke in. “But back to the aliens…where are they now? Are they here? Are they coming? Are they coming for all of us? Where are they at this very moment?”

                “I can’t really put it together,” Shiro said furrowing his brow as everyone’s attention zeroed in on him. “I remember the word ‘Voltron.’ It’s some kind of weapon they’re looking for, but I don’t know why. Whatever it is, I think we need to find it before they do.”

                “Well last night I was rummaging through Pidge’s stuff,” Hunk said, digging through her backpack, “and I found this picture. Look it’s his girlfriend.”

                “Hey, gimmie that,” Pidge said, grabbing the picture and her backpack. “What were you doing in my stuff?”

                “I was looking for a candy bar. But then, I started reading his diary-“

                “What?!” Pidge exclaimed, grabbing it from Hunk’s hand.

                “And I noticed that the repeating series of numbers the aliens were searching for looks a lot like a Fraunhofer line.”

                “Fraun-who?” Keith asked.

                “It’s a number line describing the emission spectrum of an element, only this element doesn’t exist on Earth. I thought it might be this Voltron and I think I can build a machine to look for it, kind of like a Voltron Geiger counter.”

                “Hunk, you big gassy genius!” Lance exclaimed, smiling.

                “It’s pretty fascinating,” he said smiling. “The wavelength looks like this,” he said, pulling a graph from his back pocket.

                Keith’s eyes widened as he looked over it. “Gimmie that,” he said, grabbing the map. He scrutinized it more closely.

                “What-?” Hunk began, but Keith just shook his head and walked over to the bulletin board. He held up the graph next to one of the pictures that he took of the valley, feeling his heartrate pick up when the two images matched.

                “Okay, that’s a little freaky,” Pidge said.

                Keith nodded. “Hunk, how fast can you make this Geiger counter?”

                “It might take me just under an hour if you have all the supplies that I need.”

                Keith looked over at him. “Let’s hope that I do. Because there’s no way that I’m going to be able to go into town and get them for you with the entire Garrison on my ass.” He folded the sheet of paper back up and set it down on the table. “Come with me out to the shed and you can see what you’ve got to work with.”

                Keith ignored where Shiro was trying to catch his eye and left him with Lance and Pidge in the middle of the room as he and Hunk walked out the front door and rounded the shack. He pulled the weather-worn door open and let Hunk inside first. They guy, immediately got to work, pulling down extra parts and tools and wires. Some of what he collected on the table were things that Keith didn’t even know he had.

                “Okay, by some miracle, I think that you actually have all the parts that I need. If you don’t mind letting me work out here, I can get this put together and come get the rest of you when it’s done,” he said, finally looking up.

                “Okay, if you’re sure,” Keith said, hesitating at the doorway.

                “Absolutely,” he said, waving him off.

                Keith hesitated one more time, before reluctantly letting the door shut behind him. He scuffed his boots through the dirt as he made his way back up the steps and to the door, he was about to pull it open when voices caught his attention.

                “I’m just saying…don’t you think it’s a little strange?” Lance asked. “He shows up here. The government doesn’t even tell us that he’s back for weeks and he doesn’t remember anything. How is that even possible?!”

                “Lance, I know that it’s frustrating that you don’t understand, but something pretty serious could’ve happened to Keith. The least we can do is be here and support him along the way and help him out until his memories return,” Pidge explained, voice gentle.

                “Pidge is right. As much as I would like to know what happened to him, we’ll just have to take it slow and see how things happen,” Shiro added quietly, the sadness audible in his voice.

                Keith swallowed thickly and felt his chest tighten. He shifted his weight purposefully and listened as the board under his food creaked loudly. He forced the emotion form his face and pulled the door open, walking inside to find the group standing around where he’d left them.

                “Um…Hunk found all the parts he needed and he’s working on building this machine. He’ll come and get us when he’s done,” he explained to everyone watching him.

                They nodded and relaxed. An awkward silence descended on the group as everyone stole glances at everyone else. Lance and Pidge took seats on the couch leaving the other two standing.

                “Keith-I…” Shiro started.

                Keith stared at him, wide-eyed.

                “Can I talk to you? Alone?”

                Keith looked past him towards Lance and Pidge. Lance was watching him with unguarded interest and Pidge gave him an encouraging nod. He looked back at Shiro who had his eyes trained on his face and wore a determined expression.

                “Sure…uh, we can go into the kitchen.” He turned stiffly and walked into the other room, Shiro close behind. He took a seat at the table and waited as Shiro sat across from him.

                “I know that you said you don’t have any memories of me and only remembered my name, but what do you know, if you don’t mind me asking?”

                Keith sighed, weary. He was wondering just how many more times he was going to have to go over this details before he would get to stop repeating himself to every new person who he met.

                “I don’t remember practically anything about my life. There are a few fuzzy things from when I was younger and I’ve retained all educational and general knowledge, but nothing else. I tried looking through the files on my computer to see if they could shed some light on my life, but they’d been wiped before I could go through them. That’s pretty much it. I’ve been working these past several months thanks to the research and evidence I found. Nothing else has offered as much of a drive than this Blue Lion and you.” Keith flushed when he realized how that had sounded, but Shiro just smiled at him.

                “And you don’t remember school? Or the mission? Nothing else about me?” he asked, hope still managing to creep into his voice.

                Keith hated that he was going to cause more pain, but he shook his head regardless. “Someone had to tell me that I was on the Kerberos mission with you and that you were the other pilot on the ship. I don’t remember actually going to school and have no memories of being there, just the knowledge that I gained.” He furrowed his brow. “Although, I didn’t think too much of this at the time since we had to get away from the quarantine tent, but…when I was first in the same room as you, I got this awful headache and a rush of emotions. It was too fast for me to make sense of and I knew I couldn’t dwell on it, but it was almost as though I was trying to remember something that was being blocked.”

                He looked up to find Shiro staring at him, expression open and even more hopeful than what he saw before. His lips were parted in a silent gasp and his eyes were sparkling.

                “That’s something at least. That just means that there’s something there. And once we figure out how to fix it, I think we’ll be able to get you your memories back.”

                Keith squashed the hope that was threatening to rise in his chest. He didn’t want to be disappointed. “You think so?” he asked quietly.

                Shiro’s expression softened. “Yeah. Yeah I do.”

                He nodded. “Do you think-do you think it would help if you tried to share with me some memories you have of the two of us. Maybe from the Kerberos mission since that’s the most recent? Maybe it could help get rid of this mental block?”

                “It might. Let me think…okay. So on the day that we set to launch for the Kerberos mission, the two of us were having our last breakfast on Earth in the mess hall of the Garrison. We both had to force ourselves to swallow down the scrambled eggs and sausage because we were so excited that we wanted to leave then and there,” Shiro explained, grinning.

                Keith felt himself matching Shiro’s grin, his enthusiasm infectious.

                “So once, we finally deemed that we’d eaten enough and could get away with heading to the launch site, we grabbed a ride on one of the rovers and headed over. Matt and Samuel were already there, having been driven in from their home in town. The Commander took us into a room where we could get changed into the flight suits. We couldn’t contain how happy we were…”

                Keith smiled. He closed his eyes, feeling as though he could actually picture it…until a shooting pain raced through his head. He gasped and clutched at his head.

                “Keith? Keith are you okay?” Shiro asked, upending his chair in his effort to get to his feet.

                Keith lowered his forehead to the table and nearly sighed when he felt fingers running through his hair and coaxing his own hands to release the strands of hair that he’d been clutching onto. Slowly the pain began to subside and he felt his breathing become a little easier. The hands continued to move through his hair as the remainder of the pain dissipated.

                “Keith?” Shiro asked, tentatively. He raised his head and rubbed his thumbs over his cheeks. “Are you okay?”

                Keith sighed into the gentle touch, letting the rest of the tension seep from his shoulders.

                “Hey guys!” Hunk exclaimed bursting through the front door. Keith and Shiro pulled apart, Keith pushed himself from his chair and followed Shiro into the other room. Hunk smiled even wider when they entered the room. He held out a small machine in his hand. “It’s done.”

                “Let’s go,” Keith said, darting out the door.

                “Wha-Keith!” Shiro called after him.

                He grabbed his keys from the shed and hurried over to his hoverbike as everyone else filed out of the shack.

                “Climb on. We’ve got a bit of a ride ahead of us,” he said with a smirk.

                They all stared at him a minute before hurrying over and situating themselves on the bike as best they could. Keith started the ignition and took them off across the plains. The reduced speed was obvious, but he didn’t mind so much now that he wasn’t trying to outrun the Garrison. They had plenty of time to make it back out to the rock outcroppings. Even if the Garrison stopped by, they wouldn’t know which direction to look for him.

                Keith slowed down and stopped just outside the arch that the rocks created. Everyone else looked on with awe as he shut off the engine and pocketed the keys.

                “Come on,” he said, jumping from his bike. “This place is pretty big so the sooner we start looking for this, the sooner we’ll find it.”

                Hunk handed the small satellite detector to Pidge while he watched the levels fluctuate on his counter. He led the way through the rocks searching for any change that could indicate a lead.

                “The levels are speeding up. Hurry, this way,” he said, rushing towards a seemingly solid rock face. Keith knew exactly where they were heading.

                As soon as the group broke over the edge of the hill, they found an inlet with a cave entrance. He took the lead and slid down into the inlet, waving his hand for everyone to follow him. They walked through the entrance as a group, everyone staring at the surrounding walls and ceilings in shock.

                “What are these?” Shiro asked.

                “These are the lion carvings I was telling you about,” Keith explained. “They’re everywhere around here.”

                He watched as Lance walked over to one of the walls and examined them more closely. He brushed away some of the dirt and almost immediately, various carvings began to turn blue and glow.

                Keith took a step back. “They’ve never done that before.”

                Suddenly, the ground around them rumbled and broke in on itself, sending all five of them into a freefall. The group dropped into an underground cave. Keith rubbed his back from the impact and knew that he was probably going to have some major bruising there the next day. When he looked up he caught sight of a giant robot inside of a blue sphere and stumbled forward, eyes wide. Everyone else followed quickly behind him.

                “Is this it? Is this the Voltron?” Pidge asked.

                “Must be,” Shiro added.

                “This must be what’s been causing all of this crazy energy out here,” Keith said, walking up to the blue sphere. “Looks like there’s a force field around it.” He ran his hands over the sphere as the rest of the group approached behind him. “I wonder how we get through this.”

                “Maybe you just have to knock,” Lance said, raising his hand and rapping twice.

                A blue pulse of light went off and the energy field disappeared. A barrage of images rushed through his head. He was worried that it was another attack, but there was no pain accompanying them.

                “Uh, did everyone just see that?” Lance asked.

                “Voltron’s a robot. Voltron is a huge, huge awesome robot!” Hunk said, excitedly.

                “And this thing is only one part of it. I wonder where the rest of them are,” Pidge added.

                “This is what they’re looking for,” Shiro said, completely sure.

                “Incredible,” Keith murmured, still in shock over what they’d found.

                The lion leaned forward and opened its mouth, revealing a walkway into the rest of the robot. Lance barely hesitated before rushing inside. Everyone else followed after him, looking around at the technology that was surrounding them. Lance had already made himself home in the cockpit when everyone else arrived.

                “Okay everyone, I feel the need to point out,” Hunk began, “we’re inside a giant futuristic alien cat head right now.”

                Lance leaned forward and pressed a series of buttons before pushing the two handles forward. The lion roared before bounding across the floor and straight into the cave wall. They emerged onto the planes outside of the rock outcropping and began to fly. Keith clutched onto the back of Lance’s seat to try and keep his balance as he watched the land streak past them.

                Keith watched helpless as Lance took them up into the atmosphere and towards space.

                “It says there’s an alien ship approaching Earth. I think we’re supposed to stop it,” Lance explained.

                “What did it say, exactly?” Pidge demanded.

                “Well it’s not like it’s saying words, more like feeding ideas into my brain,” Lance said.

                “Well if this thing’s the weapon they’re looking for, why don’t we just try, I don’t know, giving it to them?” Hunk asked. “Maybe they’ll leave us alone. Sorry lion, nothing personal.”

                “You don’t understand. These monsters spread like a plague throughout the galaxy destroying everything in their path. There’s no bargaining with them. They won’t stop until everything is dead,” Shiro grit out.

                Everyone looked at Hunk accusingly.

                “Oh,” he choked out. “Never mind then.”

                Once the lion had exited the Earth’s atmosphere, a giant purple ship came out of nowhere and stopped in front of them. Lance navigated the lion around it and hovered several hundred feet away.

                “Holy Crow is that actually an alien ship?” Hunk asked.

                “They found me,” Shiro nearly whispered.

                The ship unleashed its lasers and Lance dodged easily, flying out of their path. He managed to shoot a laser of his own and blow a hole in the side of the ship. Dodging the lasers again, he approached closely and used the lion’s claws to scratch another hole in the ship before turning away and flying further out towards the edge of the solar system.

                The alien ship followed them past Kerberos where a wormhole appeared. The group exchanged looks.

                “Shiro, Keith, you’re the senior officers here…what should we do?” Lance asked.

                Keith was about to open his mouth to protest when Shiro began speaking.

                “Whatever’s happening here the lion knows more than we do. I say we trust it, but we’re a team now…we should decide together.”

                Everyone nodded at Lance and gave their support. He sighed and navigated through the wormhole, bringing them to another planet entirely, leaving their solar system and their world behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated and loved. 
> 
> You can find me on tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all are looking forward to another chapter of this!
> 
> Just letting y'all know, tomorrow I board a flight to Scotland for a semester abroad which means classes are going to be starting up again soon which also means that fic updates are going to slow back down to the usual schedule where I update one of my fics a month. 
> 
> Happy new year and I hope you enjoy this last update before we welcome 2017!
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith stared up at the castle that the Blue Lion had stopped in front of and had to work hard to suppress the shiver of nervousness that threatened to roll over him. They walked forward slowly and moved through the entrance. The hallway leading into the castle was dark and shadowed. Suddenly a blue light washed over them and the lights flickered on one by one, illuminating the castle around them. They moved forward, climbing the grand staircase.

                “Hello?” Hunk called, voice echoing through the halls. “Helllloooo?”

                Keith stared at the walls around him, wondering how so much could have changed so quickly. He felt even further out of his depth than he normally would, not having anything to really ground himself. Eventually, they found themselves in a large round room with a central console. Pidge walked over to it, hands running over the metal.

                “How does this thing work?” she asked.

                The hiss of what sounded like decompression rung through the room and they looked to find two pods rising from the floor. The top of the pods released and a woman inside gasped.

                “Father!” she exclaimed, reaching out. Lance hurried over and caught her in his arms. She blinked confused and looked up at Lance. “Who are you? Where am I?”

                “I’m Lance,” he said, smirking, “and you’re right here in my arms.”

                She scrutinized him. “What’s wrong with your ears?”

                “What do you mean?”

                “They’re hideous!”

                “No, they work just fine and they heard what you said perfectly!”

                In a move that Keith almost couldn’t track, she’d sent him to his knees.

                “I’m Princess Allura. What are you doing in my castle?” she questioned.

                “A giant robotic blue lion brought us here. I swear we don’t know anything else!” he explained frantically.

                “The Blue Lion? How did you get the Blue Lion? What happened to its Paladin?”

                “I don’t know! I swear, it was empty when we found it.”

                Allura let go of Lance’s ear and let him fall to the floor. She rushed over to the main console placed her hands on it. “Just how long have we been asleep?”

                The console lit up and a holographic screen came to life in front of her.

                “Okay, so that’s how that works,” Pidge said, watching her every move.

                “Princess Allura! Intruders in the castle!”

                Everyone turned at the sound of a new voice and found a man with a rather eccentric orange mustache lose his balance and fall to the floor.

                “They’re fine Coran, the Blue Lion brought them here,” Allura explained, tapping through several commands quickly.

                “The Blue Lion?” he asked, disbelief clear in his voice.

                Allura took a step back from the console.

                “Princess?” Coran asked.

                She looked over her shoulder at him, shock evident on her face. “We’ve been asleep for over ten thousand years.”

                “Ten thousand years?” Coran asked, walking over to Allura.

                “Maybe you can help us,” Shiro broke in. “These aliens were after us, the Galra. Their leader, Zarkon-“

                “Zarkon’s still alive?” she asked, eyes going wide. A beat of silence rang out between them. “We need to find the rest of the lions,” she said, turning back to the console and typing something in rapidly.

                Keith felt a sense of familiarity from the name, but couldn’t place where he knew it from or where he’d heard it before. Shaking off the feeling and determined to worry about it later, he turned back to what the princess was doing.

                A hologram of the universe expanded around them, the rest of the group looked around in awe.

                “There are four more lions. The black one is here inside the castle, but we’ll need to find the other three before we can access it. Lance is already piloting the Blue Lion. The Green Lion will be piloted by Pidge, the Yellow Lion will be piloted by Hunk, the Red Lion will be piloted by Keith, and you, Shiro, will pilot the Black Lion. I’ve found the coordinates of the Yellow and Green lions, but I can’t seem to find the location of the Red Lion.

                “Lance, you can take the Blue Lion and Hunk to the planet and find the Yellow Lion. Shiro and Pidge, I’ll ready a space pod for the two of you with the coordinates to the planet with the Green Lion. Keith can stay here while we work to locate the Red Lion. Coran can you begin repairs on the castle to get things up and running?”

                “Of course, Princess Allura. I can take Shiro and Pidge to the space pod and send them on their way.”

                Keith watched as they followed Coran back through the castle. Once they were out of sight, he turned around to find Allura watching him. He crossed his arms, feeling defensive and looked away from her introspective gaze.

                “Keith,” she began, “I don’t mean to pry, but you seem lost. Well, not really lost, but almost as though there’s a part of you missing.”

                Keith’s eyes widened and his gaze snapped back to Allura. “How do you know that?” he choked out.

                Allura smiled softly. “I have my ways of understanding. May I ask what happened?”

                Keith felt his chest tighten. “I don’t remember. I can’t really remember anything from my life. Amnesia.”

                She looked sad at the words. “Well, we have some excellent healing technology available in the castle. We’ll have to do a systems check to make sure that it’s all functioning properly, but I think it might be able to help heal your amnesia and memory loss if it’s not too serious.”

                “Really?” he breathed. He reached out a hand hesitantly. “You really think that you can help me get better?”

                Allura took his hand in both of hers. “I’ll do my best to help you.”

                “That would mean so much to me. You have no idea.”

                She pat his hand. “Come on, we should try and find your lion.”

                Keith stepped up next to her and let her chatter and tapping lull him into a sense of contentment until the rest of their group made it back to the castle.

                “Oh no,” Allura gasped.

                Keith was immediately on alert. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

                “The Galra have found us. Their ship is drawing closer. And it looks like the Red Lion is on board.”

                “We’re back!” Keith turned at the sound of Shiro’s voice and found him and Pidge grinning broadly. “Have you found the Red Lion yet?”

                “We just found it,” Allura broke in. “But there’s some not so good news, too.”

                Hunk and Lance burst into the room, looking a little shaken, but pleased for the most part.

                “The lion is located on the Galra ship that’s currently orbiting this planet.”

                “They’re here?” Hunk asked, blanching. “Wh-what are we going to do? Should we leave? Are we safe? What are we doing?”

                “We can’t leave without the Red Lion,” Pidge broke in.

                “We can’t just leave this planet either,” Shiro added. “Allura? What do you think we should do?”

                Allura looked uncertain for a moment, before weighing the possibilities, before her face set into a determined expression. “Running won’t do us any good, only cause more destruction. It cost me my planet ten thousand years ago and I’m not about to let that happen again. And like Pidge said, we can’t leave the Red Lion behind when it’s so close. With three working lions, we can get behind the defenses of the Galra ship.”

                Suddenly, a video communication pulled up on the screen behind where Allura was standing. A large purple alien creature popped up on the screen and Keith felt his stomach drop at the sight. He chanced a glance over at Shiro who was staring with narrowed eyes.

                “Princess Allura, this is Commander Sendak of the Galra Empire. I come on behalf of Emperor Zarkon, Lord of the Known Universe. I am here to confiscate the lions. Turn them over to me, or I will destroy your planet.” The video cut out, leaving them in a silence that was quickly broken.

                “All right, let’s not panic,” Shiro said carefully.

                “Not panic? The scary purple alien thing is driving his battleship toward us,” Hunk exclaimed. “We only have four lions-“

                “Technically, only three working lions,” Pidge interrupted.

                “That’s right. Thank you, Pidge,” he said, patting her on the shoulder. “Three working lions and a castle that’s, like, 10,000 years old.”

                “Actually, it’s 10,600 years old,” Coran broke in. “You see, it was built by my grandfather-“

                “Thanks, Coran,” Hunk said, holding up a finger. “Thank you for that. See? Now is the perfect time to panic!”

                “What if we leave the planet and draw the Galra away from here?” Hunk asked desperately.

                “The Galra could destroy this planet and come after us anyway. Staying is our only option,” Keith reasoned.

                “Here’s an option, why don’t you shut your quiznak?” Lance said, exasperated.

                Keith felt his eye twitch, understanding what Lance said perfectly. “I don’t think you’re using that word correctly.”

                “You five paladins were brought here for a reason,” Allura broke in. “The Voltron Lions are meant to be piloted by you and you alone. We must fight and keep fighting until we defeat Zarkon. It is our destiny. Voltron is the universe’s only hope. _We_ are the universe’s only hope.”

                Keith saw every bit of fierceness that was needed to be royalty of what used to be a mighty Empire. Allura stood there powerful and determined, prepared to lead them on their journey. Keith held a large amount of respect for her, knowing that she wasn’t going to back down and would do everything in her power to help save the universe.

                Shiro stepped forward. “We’re with you, Princess.”

                Allura smiled gratefully. “Good. Now let me help get you Paladin ready.” She walked from the room and the group followed her. The twists and turns of the castle and the directions they took were dizzy and unfamiliar. Keith knew that it would take a long time before he would be able to make his way around on his own without getting lost or ending up somewhere he didn’t need to be. They were led into a large, round room that held several pods shadowed in darkness before the lights came up.

                “Your suits of armor,” Allura said, gesturing to the pods. They each walked towards their respective pods and examined the suits inside. Keith thought they didn’t look to be the most efficient, but he’d wait to make his final judgment when he had the chance to try it on and test the fit. He just hoped that it wouldn’t restrict his ability to fight hand-to-hand.

                “Boys,” Shiro said, smiling, “it’s time to suit up.”

                They all grinned and pulled their suits from the pods. Keith was surprised how lightweight the material actually was and how strong and resistant it seemed to be. The combination was one that he never would’ve dreamed of being able to find back on Earth. He was pleased that the pieces moved independently and allowed for a large range of movement.

                “The bayard is the traditional weapon of the Paladins of Voltron,” Allura said, calling their attention to another case that was housed in the room. It takes a distinct shape for each paladin. Shiro, I’m afraid your bayard was lost with its paladin.”

                Keith gripped the handle of his bayard tightly and was surprised when it took the form of a longsword and a shield appeared with it. He grinned, knowing that was something he could get used to fighting with. He looked over at Shiro and felt a pang of sadness that he didn’t have the same advantage as the rest of them.

                “I guess I’ll just have to make do.”

                “If you’ll stow your bayards, we can head back to the main control room and go over everything you need to know about Sendak and how we can fight him.”

                The paladins followed Allura back through the maze of hallways and to the room they’d originally left. Once inside, Coran moved over to the controls and brought up a large image on the screen.

                “Our particle barrier won’t last long against the ion cannon on the Galra ship. They must’ve made some advances over the last ten thousand years. A quick retrieval of the Red Lion is the most desirable,” Coran explained.

                “How are we supposed to find the Red Lion anyway?” Keith asked, anxiety slowly building inside his chest.

                “Well it’s not a matter of we, it’s a matter of you,” Pidge said with a smile.

                “Pidge is right. You’ll be able to feel its presence,” Hunk added.

                Keith felt the knot of anxiety swell at those words, making it harder to breathe.

                “You know how you felt that crazy energy while we were in the desert?” Lance asked.

                “Yeah, you made fun of me for that,” Keith answered, the tightening in his chest refusing to get any lighter.

                “And I’m proud of that, but turns out it’s exactly like that mumbo-jumbo,” Lance said with a grin.

                “Keith, remember the Red Lion is extremely temperamental. You’ll have to earn its respect,” Allura said from her position.

                Keith nodded, hoping the others couldn’t sense how worried he actually was over this. A warm hand on his shoulder caught his attention and he looked over at Shiro who gave him an encouraging smile. The reassuring gesture helped to ease his anxiety a bit and he felt the pressure lessen just enough to where he could smile back.

                “Alirght. Let’s go,” Shiro said.

                The team headed to where the lions had been left. Keith watched as Hunk and Lance climbed into their lions and followed Pidge and Shiro into the Green Lion. He positioned himself behind her next to Shiro and watched as she easily took over the controls and maneuvered them back into the atmosphere, heading away from the Galra ship to fly around the back of the planet and approach from behind. He felt his stomach tighten as the ship came into view. He’d never considered the possibility that the color purple could prove to be quite so ominous, but there was nothing quite like the sight of the alien ship.

                Pidge flew and landed easily on the underbelly of the ship. They hurried out as Pidge pulled out her bayard, easily cutting a hole into the hull, the three of them passing inside easily.

                “Pidge, what’s your ETA?” Lance asked over the coms as they found themselves in a large room that looked to house what operated the engine.

                “We’re in,” she answered quietly, careful not to alert any Galra that might possibly be nearby. They made their way across the room and found a door leading to a long hallway.

                Keith was trying to find some sort of feeling that would lead him to the Red Lion, worried when nothing significant or any sense was triggered. He shuffled down the hallway and had to stop himself from biting his lip. He couldn’t risk being the reason that this whole plan went to shit. He heard Shiro gasp behind him and turned to look at him.

                “I’ve been here before,” he said. “After I was taken by the Galra cruiser off Kerberos. They brought us here.”

                “So that means your other crew members, they might be held captive here,” Pidge asked, hope evident in her voice. “We-we gotta rescue them.”

                “Pidge we don’t have time,” he said, sighing. “We have to get the Red Lion and get back to Arus.”

                “But we can’t just leave prisoners here!” she protested.

                “Look no one understands that more than me, but in a war we have to make hard choices. Now let’s get moving.”

                Shiro turned to walk down the hallway, but Keith kept his eyes on Pidge knowing how much it probably hurt to hear those words.

                “No!” The two of them startled at Pidge’s harsh tone. She furrowed her brow and stared at the ground. “Commander Holt is my father. He and my brother were the ones on the Kerberos mission with you.”

                Keith smiled softly at Pidge, happy that she found the strength to admit that to Shiro.

                “Commander Holt is your father?” Shiro asked in disbelief.

                “Yes. I’ve been searching everywhere for him and my brother and I’m not about to give up when I’m this close.” She turned to leave. “I won’t.”

                “I’m coming with you.”

                “What?” Keith asked.

                “I remember where the prisoners are held. Keith you go find the Red Lion.”

                He felt his anxiety start to build again. “By myself?”

                “Minor change of plans. You’ll be fine.” He placed a hand on his shoulder. “Just remember patience yields focus. So-“

                The sound of soldiers cut him off and the group broke apart, heading in opposite directions. Keith furrowed his brow as he hurried along, finding some familiarity in the words even though he wasn’t sure why. He found himself at an intersection of two hallways.

                “Great. Now which way?” he asked aloud, looking from side to side. Spotting a Galra soldier, he darted to the right and out of sight, making his way down the hallway quickly. He continued to find himself at different intersections, becoming more and more frustrated. He thought that he was practically going in circles, his building anxiety not helping in the slightest. He stopped himself at another intersection and forced himself to calm his breathing.

                “Patience yields focus,” he said, closing his eyes. He let himself relax and forced his ball of anxiety and worry away, at least for the moment. A feeling nagged him at the back of his brain and he focused on it, allowing it to grow stronger and tell him where to go.

                “Gotcha,” he said, grin triumphant. He turned on his heel and headed down the hallway towards where the Red Lion was waiting for him. He raced through the hallways, a sense of excitement taking over and leading him where he needed to be. He barged into a large room, deep inside the ship and found the Red Lion in a protective sphere similar to the one the Blue Lion was housed in. He walked up to it carefully and placed a hand on the force field. “Bingo,” he said, grin triumphant. “Let’s get out of here. Open up.” He furrowed his brow when he didn’t get a reaction. “It’s me. Keith. Your buddy.”

                He scowled. “It’s meeee. Keithhhhh. I. Am. Your. Paladin.” He knocked on the force field, growing more frustrated. Lasers shot the area around him and he turned to find several soldiers at the entrance to the room. He quickly equipped his bayard and fell back into a fighting stance, using his shield to block the lasers. “I’m bonding with you,” he shouted over his shoulder, his anxiety and doubts rushing quickly back. “Hey. We’re connected.”

                He rushed forward and began fighting off the soldiers with his sword. “You’re not getting this lion.” He knocked back two of the soldiers before laser blasts, knocked him on his ass. His shield and sword disappeared and he looked around for something to fight back with. He spotted the airlock controls and released the bay door, gripping tightly to the console to keep himself from being launched into space like the other soldiers.

                He looked up at the Red Lion, hoping for some sort of reaction, but found none, A piece of debris slammed against him, making him lose the grip he had with one of his hands. As he struggled to right himself, another container, slammed into him, forcing him from the console and out into space. Keith felt dread flare up inside him, spreading a cold chill through his entire body. He tried to force himself to quell the panic, but found it impossibly as he was left spinning through space.

                As he rotated again to face the back of the Galra ship, the Red Lion appeared in front of him and opened its jaws to bring him inside. The sense of relief left him shuddering as he clambered through the lion and took his place at the console.

                “Good kitty,” he said, finally placing his hands on the controls. “Let’s roll. Everyone, I’ve got the Red Lion. Get off the ship and back to the castle.”

                Keith grinned at the cheers and utter relief that sounded from the other Paladins, turning back towards Arus and to the castle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated!
> 
> You can find me on tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yooo!! Happy chapter update!!! So who's seen the new season of Voltron? I basically binge-watched it the day it came out and I'm so happy because it's given me so much more content to work with for this fic so I hope that you're looking forward to it. :D
> 
> This probably isn't one of my best chapters, but it moves things forward in any case. 
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                “Everyone,” Allura called over the comms, “navigate your lions through the hangers to the large bay area. There’s a closed door there that is holding the Black Lion.”

                Keith easily maneuvered his lion through the open hanger and did as instructed, meeting the other three lions there. Once they were assembled, Shiro jumped out of the Green Lion and walked forward. There was a tense moment where nothing happened, but soon enough a loud grinding sounded and the door began to open, revealing the Black Lion beyond.

                Everyone’s immediate cheers were promptly cut off by an announcement from Allura.

                “Sendak is entering the atmosphere. We need Voltron. Now.”

                Keith watched as Shiro ran forward and clambered into his lion, quickly leading them back through the hangers and to the front of the castle. A number of fighter ships were already surrounding the castle’s particle barrier and trying to blast their way through it, but most of the attempts were unsuccessful. As the main ship approached, a large beam emitted from it and surrounded the particle barrier in a wall of fire, shaking everything and everyone to the core.

                “Man, those Galra fix things fast,” Hunk spoke up.

                “The particle barrier gets weaker with every blast. We can’t keep this up much longer,” Coran broke in.

                “I can give you cover with the Castle’s defenses, but you have to form Voltron. If you don’t, we’ll all be destroyed!” Allura warned.

                “Geez, no pressure,” Hunk grumbled.

                Another blast rocked the Castle. Keith gripped his handles tightly, doing everything to keep his Lion from being blown over.

                “Listen up, Team Voltron. We have to give it everything we’ve got. This looks bad, but we _can_ do this,” Shiro said, determined. “Are you with me?”

                Shouts of agreement came from everyone.

                “Let’s do this,” Shiro said starting forward. The Lions moved through the Castle’s particle barrier easily.

                “Uh…how?” Lance asked.

                “Good question,” Shiro answered.

                “Does anyone have any ideas on how to form Voltron?” Keith asked.

                “I don’t see a combine and form a giant robot button anywhere on my dashboard,” Hunk added.

                The five Lions leapt off the end of the stone road and continued over the rocky ground, avoiding fire from the many ships as they went.

                “Can’t they cease fire for one minute so we can figure this out?” Pidge complained, grabbing one of the jets and lobbing it at another.

                Keith pulled his Lion to the side and stopped. “There’s got to be something we can do.”

                “Combine!” Hunk shouted before slamming into him.

                Keith held tightly to the controls as his Lion rolled over. “Hey!”

                “Well, that didn’t work.”

                “Maybe if we try and fly in formation that’ll help,” Shiro suggested. “Everyone take off on my cue. One…two…three!”

                All five of them moved upwards into the atmosphere at a sharp angle.

                “Does anyone else feel like we’re being pulled in the same direction?” Lance asked.

                “Uh, guys? I think I know why. Look up,” Shiro said.

                Keith spotted Sendak’s ship directly above them and noticed that they were all stuck in a tractor beam. “It’s been nice flying with you boys,” he added.

                “No,” Shiro broke in. “We can do this. We have to believe in ourselves. We can’t give up. We’re the universe’s only hope. Everyone is relying on us. We can’t fail. We won’t fail. If we work together, we’ll win together.”

                “Yeah!” everyone cheered.

                Almost as one, their lions roared together and managed to break free of the tractor beam. Keith watched as his Lion took control and began to shift, matching the movements of the other Lions and settling into place.

                “I can’t believe it!” Keith exclaimed, feeling absolutely giddy.

                “We formed Voltron!” Pidge shouted.

                “I’m a leg!” Hunk added, happily.

                “How are we doing this?” Lance questioned.

                “I don’t know, but let’s get that cannon,” Shiro added. He directed the robot forward, pulling the cannon from its place on the ship before throwing it to the side. He shoved the Red Lion forward and used it to blow a beam through the body of the ship, leaving it in two pieces. The Green Lion blasted another hole through the ship before Shiro drove Voltron through the main body of the ship, ripping through the engine room and leaving an explosion in their wake.

                As the debris fell back to Earth, Voltron divided back into the five separate Lions that they each piloted back to the Castle.

                “Good work, Paladins!” Allura congratulated as she rushed forward to meet them.

                “Thanks, pretty lady,” Lance answered.

                Shiro patted Keith on the back as he walked by. “We did it.”

                “Heck yeah, we did,” Keith said, pulling off his helmet and shaking his hair free. He saw Shiro’s eyes linger on the movement before he looked away.

                “How did we do it?” Shiro asked.

                “I was just like screaming the whole time. Maybe that did it,” Hunk added, pulling off his own helmet.

                Shiro moved over to Pidge and placed a hand on her shoulder. “We’re not going to stop searching until we find your brother and father. I know they’d be proud of you.”

                Pidge smiled gratefully at him and Keith wished that he could help comfort her in some way and make things easier.

                “We won the battle, but the war has only just begun,” Allura spoke solemnly. “I’m afraid Zarkon will not stop until he gets these lions.”

                “Good thing you Paladins know what you’re doing, because you’re going to have to form Voltron again and again,” Coran added.

                “Totally,” Hunk agreed. “Wait-what?”

                “We barely survived forming Voltron this one time,” Lance agreed.

                “And you only had to fight one ship. Wait until you have to fight a whole fleet of them,” Coran said raising his hands. “It’s not going to be easy being the defenders of the universe.”

                Keith’s eyes widened as the full impact of what he was doing finally hit him. He looked around and saw similar expressions on everyone else’s faces.

                “Defenders of the universe, huh?” Shiro asked, turning to the Lions. “That’s got a nice ring to it.”

                “I think all of you have deserved to get some rest after that battle,” Coran said, pulling at the edges of his mustache. “If you wouldn’t mind piloting your Lions into their individual hangers, you can rest up and get some food.” 

                Allura nodded her agreement. “And, Keith, if you’re feeling up to it, you can meet me in the med bay once you’ve gotten cleaned up.”

                “Thanks, Allura,” he said, giving her a grateful smile. As he turned back to his Lion he saw Shiro watching him curiously before walking off to his own Lion. Keith shook off the feeling that he was disappointing him somehow or that he owed him something. He didn’t owe him anything. He was his own person and until he knew more about his lost memories, there was nothing that either of them could do about it.

                Keith clambered back into his Lion and took off, flying around the side of the Castle until he reached an open bay door. The door shut behind him and he carefully landed in a large area, leaving his Lion to face the way that he’d come. He took a minute to close his eyes and breathe. It was nice to have a moment alone. So much had happened in a matter of hours that had caused his whole world to become turned upside down. If he was lucky, the pods would help him begin to reorient himself in what was becoming his new life.

                He walked out of Red and looked longingly over the Lion as it sat back on its haunches and powered down. His eyes roved over the high walls until they settled on the one door leading out of the bay. He pushed through it and found himself in a long hallway. Not knowing which direction to go, he chose left in the hopes that it would take him further into the Castle where he needed to be.

                The halls were long and winding and Keith thought he was finally back in familiar territory when he heard voices coming from a room further down.

                “Are you sure this will work, Princess?” Coran spoke up.

                “Honestly? I don’t know. But I want to help Keith and I think that this is something I can do at least,” Allura answered.

                Keith immediately clamped down on the feeling of disappointment that was welling up inside of him. Allura had never guaranteed that it would work, but it was something that they could try. He had to remember that much at least. He started forward and peered into the large room. Several of the pods were already occupied with what looked to be other aliens that had been rescued from the Galra ship. Allura and Coran were standing at the edge of the pod circle and seemed to be programming it for Keith.

                He cleared his throat and grabbed their attention. Allura looked over her shoulder and smiled at him.

                “If you’d like, you can have a shower first,” she said.

                He shook his head and stepped further into the room. “I’m okay. I just really want to see if this will work. I’ll have time to shower later.”

                Allura nodded. “Okay. There’s a changing room over there and a medical suit that I’d like you to put on before stepping into the pod.”

                Keith walked in the direction that she was pointing and pulled a curtain shut behind him as he stepped into a separate room. There was a folded, white jumpsuit on a small table. He set his helmet down on the only chair in the room and began to pull off his armor, doing his best to keep it in a neat pile as each piece was removed. He shivered as the last piece of his jumpsuit came off and quickly moved to lift the white one from the table.

                He pulled the zipper down quickly and stuffed his legs inside, jumping in place several times to get the material to stretch over his legs. He shoved his arms through the sleeves and wiggled a bit more until it covered his body and he could pull the zipper closed over his back. He adjusted the cuffs of the sleeves and took a steadying breath, smoothing down the fabric before he stepped out from behind the curtain.

                Allura looked over at him and smiled before waving him over. “I’ve programmed the pod to take brain scans and assess if there is anything wrong mentally. We’ve never used the pods to treat amnesia before, but I’m hoping that the advanced technology will prove sufficient with regards to your memory loss. You shouldn’t be in the pod more than an hour since you don’t have any bodily injuries that need healing. Are you ready?”

                Keith nodded. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

                “Go ahead and step inside. Once you’ve settled into place, the top will automatically shut and you’ll be drawn into a deep slumber. You may feel the need to resist the tug of sleep at first, but the effects shouldn’t feel malicious and I’d recommend trying to go under as swiftly and smoothly as possible.”

                Keith opened and closed his hands several times. He let out a shaky breath and stepped into the pod, turning in place to face where Allura was. The pod was small, but not uncomfortably so and he did his best to quell the sense of unease that arose as he saw the pod’s lid come down over him, keeping him in place. Allura gave him an encouraging nod and he let his head fall back against the back of the pod and his eyes shut, hoping that would continue to help him relax.

                He thought that he would’ve gotten sprayed with some form of gas or something that would signal the start of the process. He was surprised when he suddenly began to feel very heavy and exhausted. After the events of the day he found himself not wanting to fight the pull and let his head list to the side as he let his mind wander and welcome the darkness.

                Keith opened his eyes and looked around himself. He was surrounded by darkness, but still standing on some solid surface.

                “Hello?” he called, cupping his hands around his mouth. “Allura? Is anyone there?”

                He furrowed his brow and let his hands fall to his sides. He could’ve sworn that he’d just fallen asleep in the pod and that he couldn’t be awake yet. He stepped forward, expecting an echo from his footstep to sound, but none came. He continued forward and made it a handful of steps before things burst into color around him. He raised a hand to shield his eyes and stumbled back.

                Keith looked around, nearly walking himself in a circle as he tried to discern the colors from one another and make out the fuzzy shapes behind them.

                “Are these my…memories?” he questioned. “Great. I’m basically stuck in my own mind and talking to myself. Way to prove that you’re not crazy.”

                He started forward, walking around the wisps that had popped into existence and watched as they slowly took shape. The memories were some of his most recent ones: being saved by the Red Lion in space, landing on Arus and moving through the Castle, finding the Blue Lion, the appearance of Shiro…

                He kept moving further back, watching as the weeks and months of research that he went through passed him by in almost the blink of an eye. It almost seemed like it had taken no time at all when the whole effort had been a daily struggle and an uphill battle. Keith kept walking, not really paying attention to where he was going and just trying to follow the memories when he slammed into something solid. He staggered back several steps and looked up, expecting to find someone standing there.

                There was nothing. What stood in front of him was the same blackness that he’d awoken in. Carefully, he reached out his hands and inched forward. His fingertips brushed something solid after a few steps and he flattened his palm against some invisible surface.

                “Is this what’s keeping my memories locked away?” He moved his hands across the surface, looking for some sort of break or hold that could move it. He balled his hands into fists and pounded against the surface, letting a growl of frustration escape him. “Let me remember.”

                Keith pounded harder. “Goddamn it. Just give me my memories back.”

                A bright flash of light and a sharp pain racing through his skull sent him staggering backwards. He clutched at his head, wincing at the effect the pain left him with. He moved to fight the surface again when his body began to feel sluggish. He dropped to his knees as his vision swam.

                “No. No, please. Just let me remember. I just want to remember,” he pleaded before slumping against the ground around him, barely comprehending the fact the colors and memories were fading into nothing more than wisps around him.

                Keith blinked his eyes open, working to clear his vision as best he could. He looked around him and found the pod had already been open.

                “How are you feeling?” Allura asked, stepping into his field of vision with a smile on her face. “You seemed to be responding well over the past hour.”

                “It’s been an hour?” he asked. It had only felt as though he’d been out for a few moments.

                “Yup! Now try thinking back for me. Do you remember anything from your younger years? Do you have any memories that you know were previously lost? Do you remember anything about old friends?”

                Keith closed his eyes and thought about Shiro. He tried to think back to his time in the Garrison and tried to dredge of memories of the two of them, but sighed when he encountered that same mental barrier that he’d been fighting while in the pod. He opened his eyes and looked at Allura who was watching him expectantly. He shook his head and her face fell.

                “Nothing.”

                “Hm. Why don’t you go and get changed and Coran and I can work through the pods. Maybe if we adjust the settings and tweak it a bit, we can make it operate to help you. This condition is a bit out of our medical experience, but there might be other things that we can try.”

                “Hey…Allura,” Keith prompted as he stepped from the pod and turned toward the changing room. “Have you ever heard of any case where a person has been mentally aware while in the pod? Almost as if they sort of know what is happening or what should be happening, but is experiencing something in their own mind?”

                “I think that there may have been an instance or two where that has happened. I’ll look through the records and see what I can find. It might shed some light on how to help you. Don’t worry, Keith. I’m sure that we can figure this out,” she said, turning to him and smiling.

                He nodded and walked into the changing room, pulling the curtain shut behind him. He was a little surprised to see that his suit had been removed and his more casual clothes had been brought in for him, but he was glad that he wouldn’t have to put the armor back on. He changed quickly and left the medical jumpsuit behind before making a quick exit from the room.

                Keith stuffed his hands into his pockets as he walked down the hallway, deep in thought. As he turned the corner to head back to his room, he felt a pair of eyes on him and glanced over his shoulder to find Shiro watching him. He froze, unsure of how to approach this situation.

                “Everything alright?” he asked.

                Keith nodded and dropped his gaze to the floor in front of him, keeping his body angled slightly away. “Yeah, just trying to fix whatever’s wrong with me. Allura thought that the healing pods might do something to help, but nothing happened.” He clamped his mouth shut. For a moment he questioned why he was telling Shiro this information so easily, especially when he felt that he didn’t owe him anything. But Shiro had lost someone too. He knew him and was missing something that Keith didn’t even know about or remember.

                Shiro nodded his head. “I see. I guess I’ll see you around the Castle, then,” he said, taking a step backwards.

                “Okay.” Keith wanted to say more, but he wasn’t really sure what to say. He watched as Shiro turned his back and started down the hallway. He had the urge to reach out. To grab ahold of him and stop him. His fingers twitched at his sides, but he remained motionless, unable to do anything but watch him walk away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always appreciated!
> 
> You can find me on tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who was super motivated yesterday and wrote this chapter in one sitting??? Gosh, I've been on a roll today, but I'm so happy to share updates so yay!!!
> 
> Keith and Shiro finally sit down and talk to each other thank God. Which also means new developments are coming so I hope y'all are excited. ^.^
> 
> <3 MOLIM

                Keith sighed as he stepped out onto the upper balcony of the Castle. The light breeze that ruffled his clothes was more than welcome and he closed his eyes at the sensation of his hair being ruffled. He was incredibly exhausted after the long training day that they’d had, but they had managed to form Voltron in the end after all the work that they’d put in. Thanks to Allura’s help anyway. He was glad that several of the exercises were over though. Especially the one where they were trying to join their minds together with the headsets.

                He didn’t entirely mind that other people were rooting around in his head since most of his memories were blocked and there was really nothing incriminating in there, other than Pidge’s true identity, but no one managed to figure that one out. Or, they’d just refrained from saying anything. He wasn’t sure which, but figured that it didn’t really matter at this point. What had bothered him about the whole situation were the few wisps that he’d gotten from Shiro’s memories.

                Albeit, most of his memories were left unseen and Keith was sure the other Paladins didn’t know many of the details, but it was apparent how well the two of them had actually known each other. The longing looks that they’d shared and the handholding nearly had him blushing in the training room and now that he was remembering the images, he felt his cheeks heat up from embarrassment. He never would’ve guessed that the two of them could’ve been so public with their affection and unashamed if anyone caught them together or even saw them sharing a kiss.

                It was a relief that the few things he did see hadn’t triggered a negative reaction. He wondered if that had to do with the fact that his amnesia wasn’t entirely natural. If it was, he doubted that he would’ve experienced the things that he had while in the healing pod. He probably would’ve been healed by the pod anyway.

And then there was the fight with the Gladiator.

                He’d seen Shiro freeze after he was thrown aside and onto Lance. Keith really wanted to convince himself that he was only protecting him because he needed to and they were all working on their trust anyway. But the truth was, is that his body had acted on its own. Moving to instinctively protect Shiro from the threat and recognizing that he was in trouble. He really couldn’t live in denial anymore. He knew Shiro. Had known him. He wasn’t entirely sure what tense was appropriate considering he couldn’t remember anything about him other than what he’d gathered from his memories.

                “There you are.”

                He looked up and found Pidge watching him from the doorway.

                “Here I am,” he said, smiling at his friend.

                She walked out and joined him at the railing. “Feeling a little overwhelmed by everything that happened today?”

                He sighed. “A bit. It’s just…I can’t really deny it anymore can I? The way that Shiro looks at me and the very real fact that the two of us have a history. A history that I know nothing about and can’t do anything so that I can learn more about it.”

                “You did seem a bit shaken.”

                Keith shook his head and smiled ruefully. “I think shaken is putting it mildly. It’s almost as though as soon as I find some sort of equilibrium or comfort in the craziness that keeps happening, something new just pops up to throw me off of everything. First, it was the few things that popped up when we were trying to join our minds. They were just wisps from Shiro, but they held a bit of a punch with my lack of memories and all of that. And then when I went to defend him during the fight with the Gladiator…I just don’t understand it sometimes.”

                “I wish I could help, but I really can’t. Have you tried the healing pods?”

                “Yeah. I got in one yesterday after we fought off the Galra. Obviously nothing happened, but Allura and Coran are going to try and help me by making some adjustments with the features to see if that makes a difference. I’m not sure if it will, but I’m willing to give anything a try.”

                “Anything, huh? Have you tried actually talking to Shiro?” Pidge asked, propping her chin in her palm.

                Keith turned around to lean against the railing and looked up at the sky. “What do I even say to him? How am I supposed to start a conversation? My name’s Keith and I know that we were in a romantic relationship that I can’t remember at all, but I’d really like to know more about you and what happened. Is that really the best opener?”

                “It’s better than you sitting out here and moping by yourself considering it doesn’t look like your memories are going to come back on their own. I think you should talk to him. He’d appreciate it in any case. And the two of you can set some boundaries and expectations so that he knows not to hope for any more than you’re willing to give at this point.”

                He shut his eyes. “It’s cruel how intelligent you are,” he groaned.

                Pidge laughed. “Why do you think that it was so easy for me to sneak into the Garrison? Honestly, you’d think that after basically securing your computer and all the evidence that would’ve gotten you locked away, you’d know by now that I’m not just a pretty face.”

                “Looks like I’m a bit slow on the uptake,” he said, looking over at her. His grin softened into a smile. “Thanks, Pidge.”

                She waved away his comment. “Shiro’s down on the observation deck. Go to him,” she said, jerking a thumb over her shoulder.

                “Do I have to?”

                “Yes. Now go,” she said, pushing him back toward the doors.

                Keith huffed a laugh, but did as she instructed. He stuffed his hands into his pockets as he walked through the endless hallways, smile slipping from his face as his thoughts took over. Everything felt so different from the day before when he’d run into Shiro after his time in the healing pod. He didn’t know what type of reaction he’d get, but he figured it would be a positive one at least. That’s what his optimism told him until he found Shiro, staring out one of the large windows at the sunset beyond.

                He took a breath and stepped forward, taking the first plunge. “Shiro?”

                Shiro’s head whipped around and he stilled when he saw Keith standing there watching him. “Oh. Keith. Did you need something?”

                Keith saw his body tense, almost as though he meant to get up and walk over to him, but forced his body to abort the motion. Keith rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and looked to the side.

                “I was wondering…well hoping…if we could…” he sighed. “I wanted to know if we could talk.”

                Shiro furrowed his brow and stood up to walk over to him. “About what?”

                “Everything between us, I suppose?” He scowled at his own wording and peeked up at Shiro through his eyelashes. “There are just a lot of things that I don’t understand and would like to have a better idea where the two of us stand. And it’s unfair to you if you keep expecting something different from me, but I’m not here to give you what you think that is. If that makes sense, anyway.”

                “Yeah. I think that would be really helpful actually. Why don’t we go back to the lounge where it’s more comfortable? I could grab us a couple of drink pouches from the kitchen.”

                “That’d be great.”

                The two of them turned and walked back down the hallway side by side. Silence enveloped the space between them and Keith kept his eyes trained on the floor in front of him. He felt like he should try and say something, but wasn’t unsettled by the silence or their close proximity.

                “I’ll meet you in the lounge,” Shiro said, breaking off when they approached the kitchen and he ducked inside. Keith nodded at his words and continued down the hallway until he pushed through the door to the area they’d been in that afternoon. He took a seat on the round couch and leaned his elbows on his knees. This talk was going to be so supremely awkward, he could already tell.

                Shiro threw one of the drink pouches at him as he walked in and took a seat on the opposite side of the couch so they were facing each other. Keith took some time fiddling with the straw in his pouch to try and get his thoughts in order and figure out what to say.

                “I feel like I should probably have something in mind as to how to start this conversation, but I’m coming up empty,” he finally admitted. “It’s not every day that someone finds out they have a boyfriend they had no idea even existed.”

                Shiro chuckled. “I can imagine. I could hardly believe that I was in the shack when I woke up. I thought that it was some sick dream that the Galra had put together to mess with me. It seemed too good to be true that after everything, I was finally back with you. And turns out it was too good to be true. Because you had no idea who I was.”

                “And I still don’t. Not really anyway,” he sighed. “I guess I could start with yesterday and the healing pods.”

                “I thought you said that nothing happened with them yesterday.”

                “Well they didn’t fix anything, but…while I was in the pod I was conscious of being inside my own mind. There’s some sort of barrier that’s keeping my memories locked away. I don’t know what it is or how to get rid of it, and can’t even begin to imagine what exactly caused it to be put there, but it’s stopping me from knowing who I am and who you are to me.”

                A light flush dusted Shiro’s cheeks at Keith’s last statement, but he thought over what he told him without focusing on the statement. “How much do you have a problem with me telling you? Let me rephrase that. How much detail do you think I can give without it negatively influencing you?”

                Keith shrugged. “I’m not sure, but at this point, I’m willing to try anything. And when I do get my memories back, I’ll know if you’re lying anyway.”

                Shiro eyed him appreciatively and nodded once. “Okay. I think I might have some idea of where that mental barrier came from. When we were captured by the Galra during the Kerberos mission, you were dragged away. I don’t know what happened after you disappeared, but I do know that Samuel was immediately taken away since he was so old and Matt and I were taken somewhere else. Obviously, I never saw you again since you ended up back on Earth, but I think that wherever they took you means that they did something to your memories.”

                “That’s not exactly descriptive,” Keith said, taking a sip of his drink.

                “I can’t really be descriptive when I don’t know what they did to you. But we might be able to get our hands on some Galra tech and figure out how to get rid of your mental block.”

                “I hope so. And you don’t remember anything else from your time with the Galra?”

                “Not right now. I guess we’re both kind of messed up, huh?” Shiro asked.

                “Yeah. A true match made in heaven,” Keith said, rolling his eyes.

                Shiro snickered and Keith smiled, pleased that he could draw that type of reaction from him.

                “Oh! You wanted to talk boundaries too, right?” he asked, cocking his head.

                Keith nodded. “Yeah. I just…this seems kind of silly, but…I feel bad that you’re sort of put out by this whole situation. And I’m sure that you remember being able to be more affectionate with me which I can’t really do right now because…yeah.” He cleared his throat nervously. “I just-“

                “Keith,” Shiro said softly. “There’s no reason you should feel bad about this. I know that you don’t remember our relationship and I don’t expect you to do anything. You don’t owe me anything. Those things…kissing and handholding…I’d want you to do them because you want to, not because you feel obligated to, due to our relationship. I’d be more than happy just being friends with you right now. It’s more than just partners and fellow Paladins, but our group is all we’ve got out here in space.”

                Shiro was smiling, but Keith could see the sadness in his eyes. He took an unsteady breath and let it out slowly. He felt so awful about this whole situation. He wanted to be able to be there for him and offer some sort of comfort, but nothing could replace what Shiro was obviously missing. He just didn’t want to end up hurting him because of this.

                “I’d be more than happy to be your friend, Shiro.”

                He smile widened and was so bright that it took Keith off guard, but he returned it with a hesitant one of his own. His eyes fell down to his drink in his hands that he’d barely touched.

                “I’m going to head to bed now,” Shiro said abruptly and stood from his seat. “Knowing Allura, she’ll probably wake us up early again tomorrow to test our reflexes.”

                “Yeah. See you later, then. I’m going to stay here and finish this,” he said, raising his drink.

                Shiro nodded and walked from the room. When the doors slid shut again, Keith hung his head and sighed. This was going to be a lot tougher than he thought it would. Shiro had said that he would be fine with them being friends for the moment, but he couldn’t help but question that. He figured that if he’d been in a very open and accepted relationship with someone, he wouldn’t just be able to accept going back to this stage. He’d feel bitter and sad and he’d miss it.

                But Shiro seemed like more than a nice enough guy and he knew that he would probably appreciate having a friend in him, especially with how uncertain he felt about everything at the moment. He liked talking to Shiro because he was easy to talk to. He didn’t know how he felt about confiding in him yet and was glad that he had Pidge to help him on that front. She’d probably prove to be one of their best assets, her skills with technology aside.

                He brought his drink to his lips and sucked the rest of it down quickly before crushing the plastic in his hand and standing from the couch. It wouldn’t do him any good to think and brood about these things at the moment. The best he could hope for and the best that he could do was move forward and think about the day ahead. Nothing else mattered besides staying alive in the fight against the Galra. Everything else would come in time and the best case scenario would be that he got better in the future.

                Keith walked from the lounge area and nearly jumped out of his skin when he looked up to find Pidge standing in front of him.

                “Pidge! What are you doing here?” he asked, forcing himself to relax.

                She adjusted her glasses and peered up at him. “I just wanted to come and see how everything was going. Although you seem to be very alone right now.”

                “Yeah, Shiro left a couple of minutes ago, but we sat down and talked.”

                Pidge watched him expectantly and raised her eyebrows, smirk tugging at the edges of her lips.

                “What?” he asked warily.

                She huffed. “I’m waiting for details! What did you talk about?!”

                “Oh,” he cleared his throat. “I told him about my experience in the healing pod yesterday and how that didn’t do anything to help clear up my amnesia and he told me a few of the details of when we were captured during the Kerberos mission.”

                Pidge gaped at him. “And that didn’t have a negative effect on you? Hearing about things that you couldn’t remember?”

                “No. Thankfully, anyway. But just hearing about these events that I’m involved in isn’t going to just help the amnesia clear up.”

                She nodded and her brows drew together in thought. “Okay. What else?”

                “We just talked a little bit about boundaries between the two of us,” he coughed. “And Shiro said that he’d like the two of us to at least be friends right now.” He felt his face heat up slightly and knew that he was blushing if the look on Pidge’s face was anything to go by.

                “I told you that there was nothing to worry about. Everything went fine. This’ll probably mean that things will go a bit more smoothly, too. I know that we already formed Voltron today and everything, but it could still help make the process a bit better. We don’t even know what our success rate is like since we haven’t had any time to work on our combat skills as a giant robot or faced any enemies yet.”

                Keith stared at Pidge as her mind raced through several possibilities. He wasn’t even sure if she was aware that she was saying all of that out loud, but was amused by it nonetheless.

                “Hey, Pidge.”

                “Huh? What?” she asked, head snapping up to look at him as he broke through her thoughts.

                “We can worry about all of that later. For now, let’s just get some sleep. We had a long day today.”

                Pidge smiled. “You go ahead. I’m going to go down to my makeshift lab and do some more work.” She turned to walk off, but Keith grabbed the back of her collar, pulling her along behind him. “Hey! Keith!” she exclaimed.

                “You’ll have plenty of time to work in your lab tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that. For now, it’s time to get some sleep.”

                He heard her grumble something behind him, but couldn’t quite make out what he was. Instead of replying he just snickered and kept dragging her behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback, comments, and kudos are always loved and appreciated. 
> 
> You can find me on tumblr as my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
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> (Also if anyone would be interested in following me on twitter let me know, because I've been thinking about making one so that there's somewhere else I can talk about fic and give updates on my schedule and what's being worked on.)


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy update time!! I struggled a bit with how to start this chapter, but I was happy with where it ended up going. 
> 
> If you want a better idea of when I update or some peeks into the content of new chapters, you can follow or check-in on my new twitter account: https://twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m
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> Cheers!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Keith rubbed his eyes and stared up at the ceiling, exhausted despite having gotten a full night’s sleep. He was really hoping that after everything and the talk that he had with Shiro that it would put him at ease somewhat and he’d have less to worry about. It seemed to have done the exact opposite and he was left thinking about him more than ever. Last night his dreams had been filled with everything that they’d done together since Shiro had come crashing back to Earth. It was like some sick nightmare, replaying everything that had already happened between them, but not letting him have any context.

And then his mind had decided to fixate on the kiss that Shiro had given him after he woke up. He pushed himself into a sitting position and tried to shove the thoughts from his brain. He didn’t need to think about that. They were friends and he couldn’t latch onto a relationship that he had no emotional basis for. It wasn’t fair to him and it wasn’t fair to Shiro.

He fought off his lingering drowsiness rather quickly once he was out of the warm embrace of his bed and pulled on his uniform. He was thankful that Allura had opted out of the wake-up call that she’d given them the day before, but he wasn’t about to take any more chances if she did decide to suddenly force them into their lions for some sort of training deal. Running back to his room and stressing over getting ready was not how he wanted to spend his morning.

He walked out into the hallway, fighting the irritation that was hanging around from his lack of sleep and focused on making his way to the dining hall. He didn’t run into anyone else on his way there, but found that Hunk, Pidge, and Shiro were all seated at the table by the time he arrived. He was glad that he wasn’t the last person to show up at least.

“Morning, Keith!” Pidge said, bright-eyed and grin already pulling her mouth wide.

“Ugh, how are you this awake right now?” he mock-complained as he sat down heavily in his chair.

“Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?” she asked.

“Sort of. Just didn’t get the best night’s sleep last night.”

“Really? Is something bothering you?” Shiro asked, eyebrows drawing together in concern.

Keith felt his irritation rear its head slightly before he could tamp it down. He had to remind himself that Shiro hadn’t done anything wrong and that it wasn’t his fault that he’d filled his dreams the night before. He shook his head. “Nothing more than usual, really. I just had trouble getting to sleep. I’m sure tonight will be better.”

Shiro opened his mouth to say something else, but nodded instead. “We’ll get in a full day of training and wear us all out so that we can all collapse into bed tonight and get some good rest.”

“Good morning, Paladins!” Coran said, backing his way through the door that led to the kitchen. “Now in order to make sure that you have a successful day of training, I’ve put together a nutritious breakfast of goo for all of you. Eat up now, because I’ve got a special surprise coming for lunch.” He set down several bowls of different colored goo and stepped back as everyone eagerly loaded up their plates.

By the time the group had gotten halfway through their breakfast, Lance walked through the door and took a seat next to Hunk.

“I can’t believe you guys started eating without me,” he grumbled and filled his own plate.

“You should’ve gotten up earlier,” Keith shot back, in between bites.

“I need my beauty sleep!”

“No, what you need is a morning skin care routine that doesn’t take you an hour,” Pidge added with a snort.

Keith chuckled and held out his fist that she easily bumped with her own. “Nice one.”

Lance looked at Pidge with the uttermost look of betrayal. “I thought we were friends, Pidge.”

Hunk rolled his eyes at his two friends and lifted Lance’s spoon in order to shove it into his mouth. Lance still looked heartbroken, but dutifully ate his food goo along with everyone else.

Allura walked into the dining hall just as they were finishing up breakfast. “I’m glad that you’re all here. I’ve got a special Voltron workout for all of you this morning. It should be a great way for all of you practice working together as one with the finesse that piloting the robot requires. I’m going to keep working on repairs to the Castle and from the looks of things we should be able to leave soon and return to space. For now, I just ask for your patience and that you occupy yourselves with getting stronger and preparing yourselves to defend the universe.”

“Of course, Princess,” Shiro said, pushing his chair back. “We’ll get to work right away.”

The rest of the Paladins followed quickly, grabbing their helmets and hurrying from the room in the direction the bays were located. They broke apart as one and Keith quickly made his way to where Red was waiting for him. He wasn’t the first person to make it outside of the Castle, that honor went to Shiro, but he made it out before everyone else. Keith slowly let his lion come to a rest next to Shiro’s and watched as Lance, then Pidge, and finally Hunk made their way out of the Castle to join them.

“Now that we’re all here, let’s form Voltron!” Shiro said before bounding off.

Keith and the other Paladins fell into formation behind him for a handful of seconds before they were all taking to the sky, transitioning seamlessly into the giant robot that they were gradually becoming more comfortable with. They landed easily, finding no difficulty in their balance thanks to Lance and Hunk.

“Okay team, let’s work on going through some basic movements such as running and throwing punches that we’d aim at ship or opponent.”

“What kind of opponents do you think we’re going to have?!” Hunk asked, alarmed.

“We need to be prepared for anything,” Keith broke in. “You never know what they could send against us now that they know that Voltron is back.”

Hunk mumbled something about not signing up for this or expecting to fight scary purple monsters, but his comments went unacknowledged by the rest of the Paladins as they moved forward across the large planes that were surrounding the Castle. They headed towards one of the fallen ships from the battle that they’d had two days ago, doing their best to make quick turns and maneuvers that might mimic the path of any enemy fire that they’d experience during a battle.

“I’m going to try and kick that ship,” Lance interjected over the comms.

“When are we ever going to need to kick someone?” Pidge asked.

“Keith said that we need to be prepared for anything. This is called being prepared for any situation where we might need to kick someone.”

“Wait, we don’t know how that’s going to affect-“ Before Shiro could finish his sentence, Lance was already pulling his robot backwards and letting loose a kick at the ship. He made contact easily and sent the ship flying, but the movement caused them to overbalance and they fell heavily to the ground.

“Nice going, Lance,” Keith huffed, his irritation rising again.

“It looks like we need a little more work on balance before we can do anything like that,” Shiro said, gently, trying to diffuse any rising tension. “Let’s just get back up and continue through the workout. If we make enough progress we might be able to try that again later.”

Getting Voltron back on its feet went a lot smoother than they all thought it would. They could at least pick themselves up after being knocked over which would come in handy with any opponent that they could be faced with in the future. As they worked together, they found that they needed to communicate less on a verbal level, finally feeling the movements of each other’s lions and what to do in order to make themselves more effective. But just because it got smoother, didn’t mean that it wasn’t just as mentally draining.

Keith was exhausted by the time they made it back to the Castle for lunch. He was on the verge of a headache and really wished that Lance would stop talking. He sat down heavily at the table and was only barely aware of the absence of Pidge and when Shiro, Hunk, and Coran left to go off who knows where.

“Hey, can I talk to you a minute?” Lance asked quietly.

Keith blinked and turned his head, surprised to find Lance seated next to him. He shrugged and propped his cheek against his fist.

“I know that you don’t remember much about your relationship with Shiro or your life…”

Keith immediately tensed. This was not something that he was wanting to talk about. Every time he turned around he felt like he was trying to figure himself out or talking to someone else about what was going on with him or being questioned about how much he actually remembered. He really wanted a break from all of this.

“And you’re probably tired of talking about this all the time, but I just want you to know that you and Shiro were two of the most well-known pilots at the Garrison. None of us were really surprised when the two of you were given the task of piloting the Kerberos mission. Everyone wanted to get to your level so when the mission went missing we honestly had no idea what happened.

“I know that I was a little weird when you came back and Shiro had just woken up because I didn’t know what had happened between the two of you and found it hard to believe that you could’ve broken up since you cared so much for each other.”

Keith opened his mouth to make some sort of retort, but Lance continued on, choosing to either ignore him or just didn’t notice his intention to speak.

“I know that you’re probably working through a lot of things right now and I’m sure getting over this amnesia isn’t going to be easy by any means, but me, Pidge, and Hunk are here to help. We might not be able to solve your problem or anything, but we can still listen if you want to talk or whatever…” Lance trailed off, obviously embarrassed that he’d revealed so much personal information.

The irritation that Keith had been fighting since that morning quickly dissipated. This wasn’t the way he thought the conversation was going to go when Lance had first proposed the topic. A feeling of disbelief and confusion replaced everything else. He wondered how everything that had happened so far would’ve gone if he had remembered who he was and wasn’t suffering from amnesia. Would he have just as easily fallen back into a routine with Shiro? Would he know who Lance is and would they be friends? The never ending questions continued to build, but he supposed he wasn’t as alone in this as he’d come to believe.

His conversation with Shiro the night before was proof enough of that.

“Thanks, Lance. I-“

“Alright, boys! Time for some lunch!” Hunk said, pushing through the door from the kitchen with a set of bowls filled with food in his hands.

Lance looked back at him and he just shook his head, offering a small smile to let him know that everything was fine. They quickly dug into the food that Hunk had prepared, but were soon enough distracted by an alarm. Allura led them from the Castle quickly to confront the Arusian that had approached the Castle.

Keith was becoming less and less surprised by how quickly peaceful interactions and calm days could turn to battle and fighting. He suspected that this was soon going to be the norm: facing the Galra at every turn and working against whatever they chose to send to test them or poke fun. They still had a lot of work to do themselves in order to perfect their fighting style, but today was definitely a sign of progress.

He was more than happy to pull off his uniform at the end of the day and put on something more comfortable. The fight with the gladiator had been intense and he had been worried that they wouldn’t be able to beat it, but Shiro had helped them figure it out.

As he walked through the Castle halls, he thought about those few moments where Shiro hadn’t said anything. He’d honestly been a little bit terrified that they wouldn’t know what to do or that Shiro had frozen like he had the day before. But he’d come through for all of them and they’d won. They were one battle closer to defeating the Galra and liberating the universe from their hold.

Without realizing it, he found himself near the observation deck where he’d met Shiro the night before. He turned to leave and head back to where he thought he’d been headed, which was his room, but he caught sight of Shiro leaning against one of the windows and looking out over the land in front of them. Keith stepped forward hesitantly.

“Shiro?” he asked.

Shiro looked over at him and Keith could see the exhaustion around his eyes. He straightened and looked like he was trying to hide the tiredness that he felt, but failed. “Keith. What’s up?” he asked.

“Are you…is everything okay?”

His smile was strained and he uncrossed his arms, looking back out the window. “Just tired. Today was a stressful day with the fight with the Gladiator and I wasn’t expecting the memories that I’d get back.”

Keith walked over to him. “That’s right, you remembered how to fight that thing. And you still doing okay? You look more than just a little tired.”

He smiled wistfully. “I forgot how easy it is for you to read me and tell when something’s wrong. I’m just wondering what else is missing. I’ve got this one piece of information about my captivity, but what else is there to it? Some of the knowledge that I don’t have could come in pretty handy, but I don’t know what that is.” He chuckled half-heartedly. “I know this must be rich coming from me. I just got a handful of my memories back and you still haven’t made any progress.”

Keith fought to hold back a smile at the statement and started to chuckle. He tried to suppress it because there really wasn’t anything truly funny about the situation, but his body wouldn’t cooperate and soon enough he was clutching at his sides as full-belly laughs wracked his body. Shiro just watched him, eyebrow raised, but with a smile pulling at his lips regardless.

“You’re right. This whole thing is so ridiculous.” He reached up to wipe a tear from his eye. “It’s really not that funny, but the fact that I’m comforting you after you’ve just gotten some of your memories back. This would be the kind of thing to happen to us.”

As Keith forced out his explanation between sucking in breaths, Shiro began to laugh himself, easily finding the humor in their situation as much as Keith did. Their laughter died down slowly, diminishing into short chuckles before they were both just huffing out air.

Shiro leaned back against the window, smiling lazily, and gaze trained up at the ceiling. “Thanks, Keith. I needed that.”

“Me, too. God, we should tell everyone else about this,” he said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “Pidge would love to get a load of our great revelation.”

“I’m pretty sure Pidge is far more concerned with working through the logs that she retrieved from the Galra ship today.”

Keith froze and it took a minute before Shiro realized what he’d said that would cause such a reaction.

“That is-I-uh-I mean-“ he backpedaled quickly.

“How long have you known?” Keith asked.

“I-what?”

“How long have you known? About Pidge?”

“Just today when I got some of my memories back. Wait-how do you know?” he asked, pointing a finger at Keith, dumbly.

“Oh, well-that’s,” he sighed, shoulders slumping. “I guess I have no choice but to come clean now, huh?”

“That would be easiest,” Shiro agreed, nodding.

“Well, I met Pidge shortly after I arrived back on Earth. She was still going by Katie then, but that’s not really the point. She came to me looking for answers as to why I was back, but her family was still missing, thinking that I actually knew what the hell happened. From there, we sort of started working together on looking into the Kerberos mission. She’d gotten banned from the Garrison so she snuck in under the guise of Pidge and well, here we are.”

Shiro nodded. “That makes sense actually. Pidge really isn’t the type of person to just sit back and do nothing when something doesn’t make sense. I’m glad the two of you had each other though. When we first all got shot into space you did seem like you became really fast friends.”

Keith shrugged. “She saved my ass when the Garrison was on it after I returned. If it hadn’t been for her and her technical knowledge, whoever ransacked my house would’ve found all of my research which would have been more than enough of a reason for them to arrest me.”

“They ransacked your house?!” Shiro asked, grabbing his shoulders.

He nodded, doing his best to ignore the touch and how much he liked it. How good it made him feel that Shiro cared so much as to give such a reaction. “Yeah. They were not very happy with me being back on Earth. I wasn’t able to put it all together, but the Garrison had been involved in something big. I just don’t know exactly what that was.”

Shiro let go of Keith and stepped back. “This is insane. And here I thought getting captured by the Galra was the most out of the ordinary thing that I’d be exposed to in my life.”

“Yeah.”

“Can you tell me more about what you found?” he asked.

“Uh…sure. Come on, let’s go sit down and talk,” Keith said, turning away from the windows as Shiro fell into step beside him.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this whole chapter yesterday which is not what I was planning on happening but apparently my brain decided otherwise so have a Sunday Surprise update. I like where things are going with this chapter and I hope that you enjoy it as things continue to develop with Shiro and Keith. 
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Shiro and Keith walked through the halls side-by-side. They could distantly hear the murmuring of the celebration preparations in the main hall. The realization that he’d have to go and socialize after a full day of training and fighting was exhausting in itself, but Allura had explained why it was necessary to host the gathering. Especially since they would be leaving the next day to start their work protecting the rest of the galaxy and fighting Zarkon.

They settled on a nice alcove that overlooked Arusa beyond and sat on the plush cushions so that they were facing each other. Keith closed his eyes, trying to remember all of the details that had been thrown at him. So much had happened since then that it felt like years had passed.

“Pidge found most of the government files and documents when she was at the Garrison and passed them on to me in my own research, but it was still pretty shocking when I was faced with it all. The government established this plan called Protocol Adrasteia. It was designed as a complete government cover-up to neutralize the alien threat that existed on Earth. There were two alien species…” Keith’s eyes snapped open as he remembered exactly what had been in that email.

“Keith? Everything okay?”

Keith’s head jerked up to look at him. “Yeah, I just can’t believe I’m just now remembering this. After everything we’ve been through, I thought that the names would at least be familiar. There were two alien species that had landed on Earth and settled there: Galrans and Alteans.”

“You don’t mean…”

“Yeah. Who would’ve thought? They lived and inhabited together and brought about a new race of half-Galrans and half-Alteans. Obviously the Garrison wanted to know why they’d come to our planet and the people had complied easily enough, telling them that they were trying to escape a war, but when they couldn’t guarantee that it wouldn’t spread to Earth, the Garrison started to take action. They thought that they could prevent it from coming in the screwed up way that all governments manage to look at things.”

“So what happened?” Shiro asked softly.

“They started to search for and collect the aliens from where they’d settled. Understandably, some of them didn’t go quietly and put up a fight because they wanted to stay with their homes and with their families. Those who fought back or caused unrest were executed by government officials. But that wasn’t all. People obviously started to take notice of this and the humans who started to ask questions or started digging into the events went missing. The government was really concerned about living up to its namesake.”

“Why? What’s the namesake have to do with it?” Shiro asked, almost entranced by all of the new information.

“Adrasteia was a figure in Greek mythology. She would punish those who showed arrogance. Her name even means ‘one from whom there is no escape.’ The government would punish those who questioned it and spoke out against it.”

Keith let the statement hang between them. It was heavy in the air and Shiro looked utterly shocked, like he was having a hard time digesting the information that Keith had given him.

“I can’t believe this,” he finally said. “I never would’ve thought…”

“I know.”

“How is everything so intertwined like this? How is it that what we thought was normal or thought we’d been immune from has been lurking in the background this entire time?”

“I’ve been asking myself the same questions ever since I got back to Earth and started doing my research.”

Shiro surged forward and pulled him from his seat and into a rough hug. Keith gasped in surprised and his arms flailed at his sides, unsure of where they should go.

“Shiro is everything okay?” he asked, reluctantly.

Shiro pulled back and gripped his shoulders firmly, searching his face. “If you’d been caught…”

Keith smiled and brought his hands up to take Shiro’s from his shoulders. “I know. I know what could’ve happened, but it didn’t. I’m fine. I’m here. I’m alive. The Garrison knew that I was up to something, but they didn’t have any evidence as to what.”

“But if they did…”

“I had Pidge. I was okay. I survived.”

Shiro pulled back and shivered. “I guess this means it was a good thing that you managed to rescue me when I crashed back on Earth. Who knows what would’ve happened to me if they’d learned that I’d been captured by the Galra.”

Keith’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. “That’s probably why they sedated you. It wasn’t because they didn’t know anything about your arm, it’s probably because they recognized the technology.”

The intercom in the Castle crackled to life, cutting into their conversation. “Paladins,” Allura’s voice echoed through the halls. “Please make your way to the front hall. The preparations have been completed and we are beginning to welcome the first of the Arusians as they arrive.”

“I guess we should get going then,” Shiro said, moving out of the alcove.

The area around him suddenly felt so much colder without Shiro nearby. He nodded and followed him down the hallway, the sounds in the front hall becoming louder as they approached. There was already a pretty decent crowd by the time they arrived and Lance and Hunk were already holding glasses that they took from trays which were floating around to serve everyone.

“Guys you have to try these goo popsicles!” Hunk said excitedly, running over to them with a tray in his hand. “They’re fantastic.”

Shiro held up his hands in front of him. “No thanks. I think I’ll pass for the moment.”

Keith picked up a green one and looked at it, aware that Shiro had walked away from the group and was looking out over the front hall that was quickly filling with people. He wanted to go after him. Wanted to talk to him. But he also didn’t want to push because he knew that he’d just dropped a lot of information and Shiro was already reeling from the memories that he’d gotten back earlier that day.

Luckily, or maybe not so luckily if Keith was being honest, the Arusian King began to address everyone and a performance started that his people were putting on. He supposed that picking up his conversation with Shiro could wait until later. They’d have plenty of time as it was.

“I’m leaving Voltron.”

Keith felt his stomach drop and felt like he couldn’t do anything except stare at Pidge where she was facing their small group, bag already packed and over her shoulder. His mouth moved, working to get the words out, to articulate his thoughts in some coherent way. Pidge was his friend. He wasn’t ready to lose one of his friends, especially when he had nothing else.

“You can’t leave!”

He wanted to smack himself in the face. Out of all of the things that he could’ve said to explain his feelings, that was what decided to come out of his mouth.

Pidge narrowed her eyes dangerously. “You can’t tell me what to do!” she argued back.

Keith stepped forward, mind working at a million miles an hour to try and get some semblance of his thoughts together.

“If you leave we can’t form Voltron.” His mouth kept moving, explanations and arguments tumbling out. He had to make her understand. Had to let her know that this was so much bigger. That he wasn’t ready to lose one of his friends. That the thought of his world being upended yet again was too much to bear and left him staggering, struggling to find his balance even as everyone else surged ahead of him, ready to take on the world. It was dizzying and unnerving and he didn’t know what to do to make it stop.

Shiro pulled him back abruptly.

“Keith, that’s enough.”

His mouth snapped shut at the commanding tone that he used, bringing a stop to the words falling from him, but it did nothing to quiet his thoughts. He listened, pained as Shiro comforted Pidge and told her that she would be free to go. It almost made him thankful when the Castle was attacked. It gave him enough of a reason to move and not have to think, only needing to rush into battle and rescue the Arusians who were in danger.

His need to stop his tumbling thoughts was the reason he so readily jumped into the flames to check on the village, only to find nothing there and be brought back to the Castle and shut off outside. He wanted to hit something, wanted to punch and cause pain. He didn’t even care if he got hurt doing it. He just wanted to focus on something that wasn’t his own pain and despair. But it seemed that he would never get the chance to be so lucky.

The waiting was the worst. He’d never felt so helpless being trapped outside of the particle barrier. The strong façade of the Castle was so deceiving. The building was peaceful and stoic, but Keith knew that a war was being waged inside and it only made it worse as contact with Pidge wavered in and out. The moments in between transmissions left him jittery and anxious and once her voice came back over the radio, he always let out a breath, that little bit more relieved that things weren’t over yet and she was still okay.

It left him thinking about Lance and Shiro, too. Lance was still injured with no way to receive medical attention and he had no idea what had happened to Shiro. He didn’t know if they were together or if they’d been separated or captured or if Shiro was trying to fight off an entire army while protecting Lance because he wasn’t the type of person who would just run away.

It was why he sprinted back into the Castle without even thinking once the barrier went down thanks to Allura’s mice. He didn’t even think, equipping his bayard and brandishing the sword before even making it to the control room. And even then, any remaining thoughts that he still had skidded to a halt at the sight of Shiro on his knees with his arms locked behind his back. For some reason he didn’t quite understand, the sight was a familiar one.

It wasn’t right. It was unsettling. Seeing Shiro like that…in a position that implied he was weak and defenseless and had nothing that he could do… That wasn’t the Shiro that Keith had come to know over the past few days. That wasn’t who he’d talked to and made friends with. That wasn’t who Shiro _was._ He was strong. He was a fighter. And he was always there for his friends. He was unwavering in what he thought was right and for Sendak to wrongly assume that he could so easily bring Shiro to his knees and make him submit? That ignited a fire in Keith’s belly that he didn’t even know he was possible of stoking.

But he embraced it. Nearly grinning when Shiro jumped to his feet to distract Sendak and give him an opening. Even though the fight didn’t last long, he fought with every fiber of his being. Fought for his friend Pidge and how she’d stood with them when they needed help and stood up against a giant alien when she was only half his size. It pushed him on and he thought that he just might be able to say his goodbye to her without any regret or bitterness. Because even if Pidge decided to leave their team, that didn’t mean that she would stop being their friend. Stop being his friend.

Keith was almost thankful when Pidge went to Shiro right away to free him from the shackles that were keeping his wrists locked in place. It gave him a moment to just be himself without confronting the thoughts and feelings that had raged through him during battle. He could tend to Lance and help get him to his feet and take him to a healing pod without having to worry about where his feelings actually existed when it came to Shiro. He almost thought that he should be terrified by it, but he wasn’t.

After Lance was put into one of the healing pods, Pidge turned to face them. She looked at Shiro, Allura, and him in turn before offering a soft smile to them all.

“After today, I realized something. I realized what my dad meant when he used to talk about how working with his crew felt like a family. I’m starting to see it for myself. So…I’m staying. I’m staying with all of you and I’m staying as a paladin of Voltron.”

After all of the fighting and stress and the emotional rollercoaster that he’d experienced over the past two days, Keith had never felt a stronger sense of relief. He nearly slumped over to support himself against Shiro. He wasn’t about to lose his closest friend and now the only thing that he was left with was just the need to get some sleep. And when Pidge looked at him, all he could do was smile.

“Now that all of that’s taken care of, I need to go and take care of the Castle and get Sendak into a cryo pod so that he won’t be threatening us anymore. The rest of you should get some sleep. I understand that you probably want to stay here with Lance as he heals, but it won’t do you any good because it won’t help him wake up anytime sooner. Just be prepared for when Coran and Hunk come back because we may need your assistance in moving the crystal to the control room,” Allura said, addressing all of them.

She was the first to leave and Keith tiredly shuffled into the hallway to head back to his room.

“Hey Keith?”

He turned at the sound of his name and found Pidge standing behind him.

“Pidge, what’s up?”

She rubbed the back of her neck, obviously embarrassed. “Look I’m sorry about earlier.”

“Oh,” Keith said and felt his own cheeks grow hot. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I should be the one apologizing. I overreacted and I just couldn’t seem to get the right words out.”

Pidge shook her head. “I still shouldn’t have dropped the bomb like that. I know that things aren’t easy for you with everything and although finding my family is important to me, you and the rest of the team are my friends. Part of my family actually…and I didn’t take your feelings into account when I made my decision. I didn’t think about how it would affect everyone else and I’m sorry for that.”

Keith smiled. “I think I speak for everyone when I say that you’re forgiven. Now come here,” he said opening his arms.

Pidge smiled and welcomed the hug easily as Keith squeezed her close.

“I’m glad that you’re staying.”

“Me too.”

They stayed there in each other’s arms for a few more minutes before pulling apart. Pidge glanced over his shoulder and tucked her hands behind her back before backing away from him, knowing smirk pulling at her lips and making him frown.

“I’ll see you later, Keith. I’m tired so I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Keith opened his mouth to make a remark that she was going in the opposite direction of the rooms, but she fled before he could get the words out. He huffed and turned, shaking his head, only to find Shiro standing behind him.

“Oh,” he said softly. The thoughts and emotions that had rushed through him before at seeing Shiro on the floor looking worse for wear crashed through him. He almost took a step backwards from the intensity of it and something must’ve shown on his face because Shiro’s sheepish look melted into one of concern.

“I’m fine!” Keith blurted, voice much, _much_ higher than it was supposed to be. If anything that just made Shiro’s concern grow even more.

He quirked an eyebrow. “You sure.”

“Yeah, fine. Totally. What’s up?” he asked, trying to sound casual and failing horribly. This conversation was off to a great start.

“I just wanted to see if everything was okay, but by the looks of it things are just fine between you and Pidge.”

“Yeah, everything’s great. I’m glad that she’s staying with us.”

Shiro nodded and silence fell between them. Keith wanted to tell him. Wanted to tell him about the feelings that had waged inside of him earlier. Wanted to ask if he was okay. Wanted to know that he wasn’t hurt.

“Shiro-“

“Keith-“

Their gazes locked and Keith quickly looked away, face heating up.

“You go first,” Shiro said.

“Are you okay? I don’t exactly know what happened while Allura and I were locked out of the Castle, but for the amount of time Sendak had you trapped in here…I just want to know that you’re okay after everything happened.”

He chanced a glance at Shiro and found that he was looking at him fondly, eyelids dropped and soft smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Yeah, Keith,” he said quietly. “I’m more than okay.”

Keith glanced at him again, finding that smile still gracing his lips.

“Good. I’m…glad.”

“Keith?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad you’re okay, too.”

“But I didn’t do much…”

Shiro chuckled. “Are you kidding?! You practically took Sendak on by yourself and kept him busy until Allura could trap him! That was amazing!”

Keith felt himself flush at the praise. “It wasn’t that much…” he protested weakly.

“Keith,” Shiro said, shaking his head. “It was incredible.”

He opened his mouth to protest again, but it turned into a yawn instead making Shiro chuckle softly.

“Come on, you should get some sleep. We’ve all been up for far too long.”

Keith opened his mouth to respond but this time his stomach grumbled making him groan.

“Okaaayyy,” Shiro said, trying to stifle his laughter. “Food first?”

Keith nodded. “Food first.”

Shiro fell into step beside him as they turned and headed for the kitchen. And he couldn’t even be embarrassed about how close they were standing when he realized their proximity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you give me lots of love, there's a very high possibility this fic is going to be updated again this week so spread some love! :*
> 
> If you want to follow me on twitter where I post writing updates pretty frequently, it's: www.twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I CAN EXPLAIN, I SWEAR!!!!
> 
> Okay, so not really. Hi, I know you just got an update yesterday, but, uh, have another??? That's inexplicably longer than every chapter that's come before it???
> 
> Basically I'm just looking forward to what's coming and am super motivated to write so that I can get to that point and the writing gods have blessed me so yeah, here you go. (It might be a little rushed. Sorry, I'm excited, okay?)
> 
> Also, kudos to Jo who suggested that Rolo flirt with Keith. Had a lot of fun with that. And there's a little surprise at the end that I think y'all are going to like, too. 
> 
> And this fic is officially longer than the minimum word count for a novel so that's a thing.
> 
> <3 MOLIM

As soon as the Sun had risen over Arus, everyone had moved from their beds and convened around the healing pods to wait for Lance to wake up. Hunk and Coran had made it back safely and brought along the new crystal that they quickly used to replace the one that Sendak had hooked up to the Castle.

Keith was surprised by how fast they were moving once Lance came out of the healing pod, but he guessed that he really shouldn’t have been. There was nothing that was keeping them on the planet and they had a group of people to rescue that had put themselves in danger to help Hunk and an entire empire of dangerous aliens to fight.

“Wait,” Pidge said as the group was getting ready to leave the dining hall. “I think it’s time for me to come clean.”

Keith’s brows furrowed before he understood what she was about to do and he smiled.

“I’m a girl.”

Everyone else ignored the sounds of Lance’s complete and utter surprise at the fact as they all murmured their understanding and that they already knew.

“Pidge, owning who you are is going to make you a better Paladin. I’m glad that you finally felt comfortable enough to tell us,” Shiro said, nodding at her. “Now let’s get going.”

Keith slung an arm around Pidge’s shoulders as they walked from the room.

“I think it’s great that you finally decided to tell everyone,” he said, ruffling her hair.

“Thanks Keith. It was time. Even though it probably won’t change much…it feels good. Not feeling like I have to hide who I am or like I’m being forced into being someone I’m not.”

“Come on, let’s go get changed. We don’t want everyone waiting on us.”

Leaving Arus was a lot less anticlimactic than Keith was expecting. When you took out the large Castle that took off from the planet and nearly broke the rock that it had been wedged in in half that is. But it was strangely nice to be back into space and once they’d gotten pointed in the direction of the Balmera and were free from the atmospheric disturbance that takeoff had bombarded them with, they were able to move around the control room and hang out.

And grill Hunk over Shay.

Pidge seemed to be taking a certain type of sadistic glee in teasing Hunk over his desire to get back and help the woman who was the reason that they were able to get back to the Castle and save Lance. The rest of them just sat back and watched really. Keith thought it was nice. Even if Hunk didn’t harbor any romantic feelings for Shay, it was nice to see him put so much energy into helping another person.

It should’ve been weird. They’d been thrust into an intergalactic war that had been raging for over ten thousand years, but the moments like this…this was what Keith knew he was going to hold onto forever. He had nothing else and he was okay with that. Was learning to continue to be okay with it. Because he had friends and people who cared for him and people who he cared for. And that was all that really mattered at the end of the day.

And the days only continued to prove it to him.

It was almost easy to fall into conversation with Rolo. After explaining the situation to them and giving a list of parts to Hunk to collect from the ship, he was friendly and open to him, Shiro, and Allura. Pidge was off playing with Beezer and Lance had immediately moved off to keep Nyma to himself. Not that he was complaining or anything. He’d much rather sit around and talk with Shiro and Allura than get in the way of Lance’s courting rituals. If you could even call them that.

They relaxed quickly, sitting around on various storage crates while Rolo started a fire. Thankfully the atmosphere was stable enough that they didn’t have to wear their helmets and Keith was more than grateful to take his off. When he shook out his hair to avoid permanent helmet hair he caught Rolo staring at him and self-consciously ran a hand through it, wondering if it was sticking up weird.

“So where are you from? You seem to be pretty far from home. I don’t think that I’ve ever met someone from your species before?” Rolo asked, only addressing Keith.

He glanced at Allura and Shiro. “Shiro and I are from Earth. And humans haven’t been this far out into the galaxy before so it’s understandable that you haven’t met anyone like us before.”

Rolo looked between them for a moment almost as though he was assessing them. “Are the two of you mates?”

Keith felt himself flush at the question and frantically waved his hands in front of himself. “No! No, no, no. We’re not.” He cringed at how horrified he sounded, but he really wasn’t ready to address his own feelings on the matter since they were still a jumble from the day before. He shot Shiro an apologetic look who only smiled at him sadly and shook his head.

Rolo grinned, looking delighted by the news. After he finished stoking the fire, he sat down on the crate next to Keith who subconsciously shifted away because he was a little too close. “So would you say that you’re one of the most beautiful of your species? Because you certainly seem to be out of the rest of your group.”

Keith frowned and heard someone spluttering behind him. “That’s a little rude. Everyone has their own traits which are beautiful and insisting on trying to compare people when we’re all so different is what’s already caused problems on our planet.”

Rolo leaned into his space and Keith leaned away from him just as much. Aliens seriously didn’t have any boundaries or sense of personal space and it was starting to get on his nerves.

“Have you ever thought about traveling the universe? Exploring new planets and seeing new things?”

Keith shrugged and tried to put distance between them. “Sure. That’s why I joined the Garrison. That’s why Shiro joined the Garrison. Right?” he asked, looking over his shoulder.

The look on Shiro’s face took him by surprise. He honestly looked furious, helmet held tightly against his side and other hand fisted. If Keith hadn’t spent so much time around him for the past few days he wouldn’t have noticed it, but his posture was absolutely rigid.

“Right,” he answered, voice too tense. It made Keith frown. He didn’t know what he was angry about, but he didn’t like it. This was supposed to be a relaxed and easy stop.

“Anyway,” Keith said as he turned to face Rolo again and stopped. He’d gotten even closer, peering up at him with hooded eyes. He swallowed and stood abruptly, nearly hitting him in the face with his elbow. He started to pace, hoping to work off his nervous energy that had just sprung up. “What happened to you guys? You said that you’ve been fighting the Galra?”

“Do you really want to talk about that?” Rolo asked, standing to approach him.

“Yes,” Shiro said tightly, stepping in between Keith and Rolo.

Keith was relieved that Shiro had interfered honestly. He didn’t know what was up with him, but Rolo was making him very uncomfortable. He’d have to remember to ask Allura about other alien species later and how comfortable they were with personal space. And what the polite way was to let someone know that they weren’t comfortable with that. He hoped that it wasn’t offensive to brush off the close contact, but he didn’t think doing so right now could lead to anything worse than the intergalactic war they were already involved in.

Rolo frowned openly at Shiro for only a moment. The change back to his calm demeanor was almost instantaneous, but he moved over to a crate on the opposite side of the fire and sat down, beginning his tale. Shiro gave him a look before he moved off to stand to the side. Keith took a seat on one of the crates next to the one that Allura was leaning against and listened to what Rolo was saying. He figured that this wasn’t the end of it, but he didn’t know what this was exactly.

Keith’s breathing was a little heavier than it probably should’ve been, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. His hands were shaking with the leftover adrenaline rush that had surged through him as he darted and flew and twisted through asteroids in order to help get Lance’s Lion back. It felt good though. He hadn’t gotten the chance to fly like that in…a long time he was sure. The closest he’d come to this feeling was when he’d had all of his friends on his bike and had to jump off of a cliff to escape the Garrison rovers that were chasing them.

After they dropped Rolo and his group off for good, they loaded the Lions back into the Castle and continued through space, Keith found himself in one of the alcoves. He tucked himself onto the plush cushion and watched as the stars moved past the window. The shaking in his hands had stopped long ago, but he could still feel the faint traces of energy thrumming through his veins. He held on to the memories of how the controls had felt in his hands, unconsciously shifting from side-to-side as he’d done in the Lion. Feeling every turn and change in direction. Every movement.

He sighed and closed his eyes, tipping his head back to lean against the wall behind him.

“There you are.” Shiro’s voice didn’t startle him like it probably would have days ago. He found it soothing now, even though it didn’t do anything to help the jumble of emotions that were at war within him. It was a comfort. Just another reassurance that he wasn’t alone. “You feeling okay?” he asked, taking a seat across from him.

Keith let his eyelids flutter open and looked across from him. “Yeah, I’m good. Just working to come off the adrenaline rush from earlier, really.”

Shiro hummed. “Still have problems with that, huh?”

Keith dropped his head to look at Shiro more fully. “You mean this is a regular thing?”

“I wouldn’t say it’s a regular thing, but it’s happened before.”

“Huh.”

Keith thought that he should be bothered by this new piece of information. That he was being given something that wasn’t his own, but…he wasn’t. It felt like nothing more than an easy comment about the weather. Something that didn’t have any impact or consequence. Maybe it was because he’d experienced it for himself and had a reference to the feeling. Maybe it was because this was Shiro and he was becoming far more comfortable around him than he’d ever thought he’d be.

“What do you think’s going to happen when we fight Zarkon?” Keith asked, changing the topic even as he stared out the window and at the stars that continued to pass them by.

Shiro sighed. “I don’t know. I know that it’s going to be tough. He hasn’t been in control of the universe for ten thousand years for nothing.”

“Do you think we can do it?” he asked, turning to look at Shiro again.

He smiled in a sad and sort of self-deprecating way. Keith didn’t need an explanation, he understood immediately. It wouldn’t be a walk in the park. They knew that much. They could only hope to do their best and have the power and the resources to take him down once and for all.

“We should go and find the others. I’m sure that we’re probably getting close to the Balmera and we don’t know what’s going to happen once we show up.”

Keith nodded and stood from his seat. He looked through the window one last time, trying to memorize the patterns of the stars and commit all of this to memory. When he turned to follow Shiro and caught sight of his back he cocked his head and watched him. He still seemed tense and Keith wondered if something was still bothering him. He’d seemed sort of off ever since they were talking to Rolo earlier.

“Shiro? Are you okay? You look kind of tense,” Keith said, walking up next to him and scrutinizing him.

“Uh, I’m fine. It’s nothing really.”

Keith narrowed his eyes and watched as Shiro relaxed. He knew it was forced. Could tell that there was still something lurking close to the surface. “No, you’re not. Something’s bothering you. Has been since we met Rolo. What is it?”

Shiro waved away his concern. “Really, it’s nothing, Keith-“

“Don’t try and brush this off, Shiro,” Keith said firmly, taking hold of his arm. “What’s wrong? And don’t even think about lying to me.”

Shiro looked at him, eyes flicking away a few times before he sighed and closed them. He swallowed once. “Okay. It…bothered me. How Rolo was flirting with you. I didn’t like it.”

Keith’s mouth dropped open in shock. “What do you mean? He wasn’t flirting with me.” He let his mouth drop from Shiro’s arm and took a step back.

Shiro rolled his eyes and gave him a look that was a mixture of exasperation and fondness. “Keith. He was flirting with you.”

“But…but…” he said weakly, trying to find some argument. Some evidence that proved he hadn’t been flirted with. He made an embarrassed noise in the back of his throat and felt his face heat up. Shiro managed to pat him on the back in the most patronizing way which only worked to further Keith’s embarrassment.

“I’m never going to talk to anyone ever again,” he said, burying his face in his hands.

Shiro chuckled. “I don’t think that’s going to be possible. You’ll have to talk to me and Coran and Allura and Pidge and Lance and Hunk at least.”

Keith curled forward drawing another chuckle from Shiro. Muscular arms wrapped around his back and pulled him forwards against a firm chest, making Keith still. He was glad that Shiro was still laughing and hadn’t noticed the change in him. As he relaxed into the embrace, as slow as it was, Shiro’s arms tightened around him, making his breath hitch inaudibly.

After a moment Shiro let his arms fall away and he stepped back, letting Keith straighten now that his face didn’t feel like it was going to burst into flames for how embarrassed he was at it all. They continued down the hallway, remembering their original intention to get back to the control room and see where they were in relation to the Balmera.

“Does anyone else know?” Keith finally asked, not entirely sure if he wanted the answer to that question.

“Allura maybe, but the others too distracted that I don’t think they picked up on it. I only noticed since I was there and saw what he was doing.”

“Sorry.”

“Hey, you have nothing to apologize for,” Shiro said, gaping at him.

“Yeah, but I’m sure that you felt put out by it all and my own feelings are all a jumbled mess and-“

“Keith,” he said, cutting him off. “It’s okay. We’ve already established our boundaries. Yes, I got angry and I wasn’t happy with the situation but that was because I still care about you. It wasn’t my way of trying to pressure you into anything and if you do find yourself wanting to date someone, don’t let my feelings be a barrier for that. I probably overreacted, but you did seem pretty uncomfortable with some of the questions that Rolo had been asking and how close he was to you.”

“Shiro?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for looking out for me. I really appreciate it.”

“Anytime Keith. Anytime. Now let’s see what’s going on with the Balmera.”

Keith didn’t know what he was expecting when it came to the Balmera, but he could admit that it wasn’t a total surprise when they were immediately attacked as soon as they broke through the atmosphere to land. He was all too happy to run to his Lion and suit up and get going. He followed Shiro’s directions easily, the five of them taking on their roles and doing what they could to help.

Working as a team was reassuring. It gave each of them someone to lean back on and find comfort even when things seemed dire like when they’d become trapped in the core or when they were facing off against a new monster that Zarkon had sent after them. The Balmerans even helped save them once they found their reason to fight and decided that they weren’t going to lay down and let themselves or let the Balmera die.

Keith wanted to collapse in relief after the Balmera trapped the monster in its crystal. It had been the longest and hardest fight they’d had so far. At least when Sendak had captured the Castle, they’d still had hope and been able to formulate a plan as to how to get out of the mess they were in. He was glad when he was finally able to strip out of his uniform and find a place to think. He ended up back in one of the alcoves and was quickly becoming one of his favorite spots. It gave him a great view of the Balmera and the new crystals that had formed on the surface, providing an almost eerie blue glow to it all.

His mind kept flitting between the conversation that he’d had with Shiro earlier and everything that they’d managed to do. Shiro had never given him an answer as to whether they could beat Zarkon or not. When they’d thought that they’d defeated the monster after knocking it down because of Hunk’s blaster, it had given him hope. Hope that even though they weren’t strong enough to beat Zarkon. Weren’t as strong as they needed to be, maybe with time they’d be able to get stronger.

They’d be able to defeat each new opponent until they could face off with Zarkon and actually have a chance at winning. But when that monster had gotten back onto its feet. It gave Keith doubts. Made him think that they wouldn’t be able to do it after all and they were just kidding themselves with taking on the roll as the Paladins of Voltron.

He sighed and let his head fall forward so he could stare at his hands.

“I can hear you thinking from all the way over here, you know.”

The smile that tugged at Keith’s lips at the sound of Shiro’s voice was definitely something that he wasn’t used to. But he was tired and if he could use that as an excuse to put off thinking about how he felt about this whole situation for a little longer then he was fine with that and wasn’t about to complain. He looked up as Shiro sat down across from him.

“I wish I could make it stop, but that’s a no go. I just keep getting caught up on the idea that we might not actually be able to defeat Zarkon. Especially after today, my doubts are going strong. I mean, we weren’t even able to take out that new monster entirely and we’re expected to go up against the strongest person in the entire universe?”

“You’re right that we weren’t able to defeat that monster completely, but we did take out that battle cruiser. And I think something that we all need to remember is that we’re not alone in this. Most importantly, we have each other and we have Coran and Allura. But we also have everyone else who’s not going to lay down and obediently obey Zarkon. The Balmerans showed us today that they’re willing to fight. They helped us.

“There are going to be other people out there, Keith. It’s not just us and it’s not just you. It’s everyone. And when we all stand together…well then, we’re certainly a force to be reckoned with. And I don’t think Zarkon even has the strength to overcome something that incredible.”

Keith stared out the window, taking in everything that Shiro had said.

“You’re really confident in all of this, Shiro,” he murmured quietly.

“That’s because a universe ruled by Zarkon isn’t one that I think I could ever live in. Being a Paladin of Voltron gives me a purpose and if we lose and Zarkon wins, then I’d rather die than have to experience what that’s like.”

“So you’d rather die than stay with the rest of us?”

“If I was given the chance between dying and being with you, I’d choose being with you, but if that also meant living under Zarkon’s rule…I don’t think that’s something that I’d ever be able to go back to.”

Keith stood abruptly before he could even question himself or stop himself. Shiro looked surprised, but Keith only saw his expression for a moment before he had wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pulling him to his chest. Shiro’s arms remained limp at his sides.

“Um…Keith?”

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry, Shiro.”

“It’s okay, Keith.”

“No!” he answered sharply, pulling back to grasp Shiro’s face between his hands to make him understand. To try and make him understand how wrong all of this was. “It’s not okay. It’s not okay that you were trapped with the Galra for a year and forced to fight and when you show up on Earth you don’t even have anyone to lean on. Instead, you’re suddenly put in charge of a group of people who are supposed to save the universe and free people from the oppressive regime that you’ve suffered at the hands of.

“And you still won’t let yourself lean on anyone. You keep everything to yourself and it’s not fair. You shouldn’t have to bear all of that! Especially when you used to have someone. When I…when I…”

_When I like you._

The realization crashed through him so severely that he had to take a step back. Had to clamp down on the words, on his tongue to keep them from spilling from his mouth as everything came into perfect clarity. He backed towards the arch of the alcove. He needed to be alone. He needed to think, because this was too much. This was all becoming too much.

“Keith?” Shiro looked uncertain and _worried._ Even after Keith lectured him on taking care of himself and giving himself time, he was still worried about _him_.

“I need to go,” he blurted before slipping around the corner and hurrying down the hallway. He wanted to run. Wanted to sprint away from there. Wanted to get away from his thoughts and feelings until he was too exhausted to even think about them, because it was terrifying even though he knew that it shouldn’t be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? I thought y'all would like that. Now I'm going to bury my head under a pillow. 
> 
> If you want to follow me on twitter it's www.twitter.com/m_o_l_i_m


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! If you've been reading my other fics you know by now that I got behind on my writing and that's why it's been so long since you got a chapter update from me. 
> 
> But I'm back now and this chap is almost 4k so I hope that helps!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Keith slammed his door closed behind him and sagged against it until he was sitting on the floor. His heart was beating too fast in his chest and breathing was difficult. His eyes were wide even though he was staring at nothing and his mind was racing.

“I like him. I like Shiro. How could I like him? I barely know him! Well I barely remember him so that’s different, but-ugh!” he cut himself off and banged his head back against the door a couple of times for good measure. “Why does my life have to suck so much? Why can’t things just be easy for once?”

He pushed himself to his feet and started to pace. “It should be easy. I should just be able to tell Shiro that I like him. I already know that he likes me and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s fine.”

He paused and let his head fall back so that he could look at the ceiling. “Who am I kidding? I can’t tell him I like him! Am I even ready for a relationship? I’m already so confused about everything else and I don’t think bringing another person into the mix is going to help anything. Especially when Shiro knows so much about me that I don’t know. Why does this have to be so complicated?!”

He looked around himself. “I need a shower.” He flung his jacket onto the bed and worked to pull his boots off as he hopped towards the bathroom, tossing them aside before he walked through the doorway. He turned on the water and stepped back to pull off his shirt and shove his pants off. Keith kicked them to the side before stepping under the warm spray and sighed. He faced away from the stream of water and braced his hands against the wall, letting the water run down his back as his mind tried to start sorting through everything that he was thinking.

“I like Shiro.”

The statement hung in the air. The initial confusion and panic that had come with the statement had died away. Now there was only a new bloom of feelings. Ones that were warm.

“I _like_ Shiro.”

Saying it again helped. Made it more concrete. The warmth expanded in his chest. Morphed into something giddy and happy. He bit his lip, trying to keep himself from smiling. This was no time to be smiling.

“ _I like Shiro.”_

The words felt reverent. The revelation incredible. A giggle bubbled up from his chest and he was really glad that no one was around to hear it. The smile that he’d been trying to fight grew. Became something more until it was a full blown grin.

Now that he was alone and it was sinking in, he could accept how he was feeling. It was becoming less scary. Keith thought that he might even be able to approach Shiro about this without fleeing in the opposite direction. He was surprised that Shiro hadn’t chased after him, but he’d probably been so bewildered by his reaction that he didn’t know what to do.

Keith washed himself slowly, letting his mind settle on the conclusion that he’d come to. He had feelings. It was okay that he had feelings. Shiro liked him to. Shiro was probably waiting for the day when Keith could tell him those words again. But how was he supposed to tell him? He needed to get him alone. He couldn’t do this in front of everyone because he was sure that they’d need to talk about a lot of things between them.

And he’d just ran like a bat out of hell away from the man.

He groaned as the water washed the soap from his body. He shut off the water and waited as the air vents kicked in and dried him. Shiro was probably really confused right now. He couldn’t believe that he’d left him like that. He had to find him. Had to reassure him that it wasn’t his fault. It was just Keith being an idiot about things.

He jumped out of the shower and pulled on his clothes quickly. He had to find Shiro. He only hoped that he was still in the alcove where he left him because he needed to talk to him. He needed to tell him what he was feeling and explain why he’d run so suddenly. He opened the door to his room quickly and nearly crashed into Hunk in his hurry to get out.

“Woah, Keith! You okay, buddy? You look a little…frazzled.”

“Yeah, I just need to find Shiro. There’s something that I need to talk to him about,” Keith said, already moving away from his friend.

“Wait, Keith! Coran wants everyone down by the containment pods. He sent me to track down anyone I could find so I’m sure that Shiro is already there with him. You can talk to him there.”

Keith nearly sagged in disappointment. Nearly. He needed to talk to Shiro alone. He couldn’t do it with an audience. This was personal and that would just be too uncomfortable. But this was also something that had to do with the Paladins of Voltron so he’d be needed for that even if it wasn’t what he wanted to do at the moment. Another instance where the fate of the universe had to be put over their own desires.

“Yeah, sure. Lead the way, Hunk.”

Keith fell into step beside him and they walked together down the long hallway.

“So is there any particular reason you’re looking for Shiro?” Hunk asked, genially.

“I just need to talk to him about something. But it can wait until after Coran talks to us. This is probably more important anyway.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s more important. Just something that needs to be done. I think he mentioned something about it helping us move forward with the fight against the Galra, but I’m not entirely sure what it is we’re going to be doing. Or observing.”

“That sounds pretty important to me, Hunk,” Keith said with a chuckle.

“I guess it does. Oh, look! Shiro’s already here with Coran.”

Keith looked further down the hall and did see where Shiro was standing just behind Coran. Keith bit his lip, wanting to reach out to him, but he knew that this wasn’t the time or the place to do so.

“All right, what’s this about?” Lance asked as he trudged down the hall behind them. “What are we doing with these freaky machines anyway?”

“I’ll explain everything when Pidge arrives and then we can get started.”

Keith watched as Coran placed sensors on the pod that was holding Sendak. He shivered. Even though he was in cryo-sleep, being around him was still unnerving. Especially when the memories were so fresh of his attack on the Castle. He looked at Shiro’s back and saw the tightness of his muscles. He wondered if he was the reason that he was so tense or if he was also unnerved by being around Sendak.

Finally, Pidge walked down the hallway looking sullen. She had her hands stuffed into her pockets. “Can someone tell me what this is about? I was in the middle of running some tests on the crystal that we recovered.”

“Of course. Now that all of you are here, I’ll be more than happy to explain. This is the same technology that was used on King Alfor to store his memories in the Castle. We should be able to gather some information on the Galra this way, although I’m not sure how successful it’s going to be since we’ve never used it on an unwilling participant for interrogation purposes.”

Coran pressed several buttons and stood back. The top of the memory container opened letting a blue light through, but nothing else happened.

“Looks like we might need to give it some time,” Coran amended.

Keith crossed his arms and settled into a spot further behind where Coran and Shiro were. He was hoping that this was going to be quick. Now that he’d finally figured out what he was feeling he thought that he might actually get a chance to talk it out and tell him so they could work through what they were going to do next.

But the longer the minutes dragged on, the more discouraged he became. Nothing was happening and he really didn’t want to be stuck there all day when he was becoming antsy and nervous. He needed to do something. He needed to get rid of the restless energy that was thrumming in his limbs. Because Shiro hadn’t looked at him the entire time that he’d been there. Granted, he hadn’t tried to talk to him either, but he’d hoped for a greeting or something.

Instead, Shiro had stood resolutely in front of them all and watched Sendak where he was in the pod. He needed to get out of there and do something.

“Well, I can’t wait around anymore. I’m gonna hit the training deck,” he said, stretching his arms over his head and walking back down the hallway. He was glad when no one protested. It would give him some time alone for the moment.

He walked through the halls quietly. His head was down as his mind keep overthinking and analyzing everything that Shiro had done. He wasn’t sure why it hurt so much that he hadn’t come to him, but it did. It was true that they were friends, but their relationship wasn’t much more than that at the moment. And now Keith had something else to talk to him about, but he’d have to wait.

He pressed the panel and was let into the training room. The least he could do for the moment was work on his combat skills with the gladiator. It would hopefully give him some time to not think. Allow him to push the thoughts raging inside of his head away for a time so that he wouldn’t have to think about them again until later.

“Activate training level one,” Keith announced as he activated his bayard and fell into a fighting stance that felt more comfortable than it probably should have been. He brushed it off as just something else that his body knew how to do, but his memories didn’t match up with.

The first level was almost too easy. The gladiator’s moves weren’t too difficult to match and it was only a few strokes with his bayard before Keith had taken it down. The second level was harder, forcing him on more of a defense as he worked up a sweat so the android couldn’t land a critical hit. He felt himself slowly fatiguing, but knew that he could beat the sequence with enough time.

After he beat the second training level he took a minute to catch his breath. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to make it past the third level, but thought that starting it would give him a good idea of how hard it might be.

“End training sequence,” he called after being pushed aside. When the Castle didn’t immediately respond he gave the command again. “End training sequence.”

Keith watched in horror as the galadiator swung its staff around and started to rush him. “END TRAINING SEQUENCE, NOW!” he called desperately.

He did his best to parry the blow, but the android kicked him in the stomach and sent up sprawling across the room from his bayard. He scrambled to his feet and rushed towards him, sliding past his swing and grabbing his bayard before slipping from the room and shutting the door behind him. He paused to catch his breath when the sword from the gladiator slipped through the slats in the door.

Keith gasped and scrambled backwards before turning and sprinting down the corridor. He didn’t know what was going on, but he needed to find the others. He needed to let them know that something was wrong and that there was a killer android on the loose. He just hoped that Coran would be able to fix it.

He heard the gladiator chasing after him. He didn’t care which direction he was headed, he just hoped that he would run into someone and not die. He thought not dying would be a great goal.

Keith skidded around a corner and turned, backing away slowly. He was waiting for the android to turn the corner and find him. He knew that it would only be a matter of time.

“Keith! Keith! Help!”

He glanced to the side and saw Lance in an airlock. “What are you doing in there?” he exclaimed just as the gladiator rounded on him. He barely swung up his bayard in time to block the attack.

“I’m about to get shot out into space!” he screamed.

Keith shoved the gladiator back and rushed over to the control panel. He hit the switch to open the airlock door just as the android was rushing back towards him. It wasn’t fast enough though, and was sucked out through the airlock. Keeping a tight grip on the control panel, Keith reached around the door and grabbed Lance’s hand.

It was a struggle to pull him back out but once he was through, Keith slammed the button and closed the door, giving them a chance to catch their breath. They gave each other an uneasy look before sprinting away down the hall. They needed to find Coran quickly.

“Do you know where Coran is?” Keith asked between breaths.

“The last I saw of him was when we went our separate ways after cleaning the healing pods. Pidge said she’d be in her lab,” Lance answered as they reached a point where the hall split off in different directions.

“Let’s go find them, then. It’s a start and then we can find Coran,” Keith said hurrying to the left with Lance at his heels.

As they neared the lab door they skidded to a stop when Coran turned the corner from another hallway.

“What’s the rush?”

“We have a problem,” Keith began.

“Yeah the Castle is totally haunted!” Lance exclaimed.

“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Coran said, trying to calm them. “Let’s go check on Pidge and Hunk and see how their research is coming.

He led the group the rest of the way towards the door and let the doors slide open. Keith watched as Hunk and Pidge and well, everything, fell to the floor.

“Now’s not the time to be taking a nap!” Lance protested.

“We weren’t taking a nap! We’ve been floating around in zero G,” Hunk exclaimed.

“Well I nearly got ejected into space!” Lance argued.

“Well I was attacked by a killer robot,” Keith spat.

“Looks like the infection from Sendak’s crystal is worse than we thought,” Coran said quietly.

“Sendak…” Keith said as his thoughts snapped back to what he’d been thinking over earlier. “Wait…has anyone seen Shiro?” he asked, dread quickly filling his veins.

“Not since we all left the containment pod that we put Sendak in,” Lance said quietly.

The group looked around each other quickly. The unspoken question of what might possibly have happened to him if the rest of them were dealing with killer aspects of the Castle. The knot in Keith’s stomach tightened. He only gave himself time to swallow in an effort to wet his dry throat before he was turning on his heal and running back towards where they’d left Shiro.

He was dreading what he was going to find. He felt guilty that he’d been the first person to walk out. As much as he hated having to wait around he cursed himself for leaving Shiro alone. Not only did he not know what he was thinking at the moment, especially after he ran out on him, but the Castle could’ve taken advantage of something that would hurt him. And he had no idea what that was going to be.

When the doors opened to the pod room, Keith froze. He’d been so ready to run to him, but seeing him leaning against the memory tank with his head in his hands…the guilt came crashing back ten-fold. He needed to tell him. He needed to talk to him.

“Shiro are you okay?” Pidge exclaimed. She was the first to run forward.

Keith wasn’t able to break out of his daze until he realized he wasn’t moving forward. Even before Shiro opened his mouth to speak, Keith could tell how rattled he was. He had sweat beaded on his forehead and his eyes had a wild look to them. Almost as though he couldn’t find anywhere safe to hide. Keith’s heart squeezed uncomfortably.

“I-I had to get him out of here,” Shiro explained, gesturing wildly. “He can’t be trusted on this ship.”

Keith felt his jaw drop. He’d never heard such raw desperation or emotion come from him. He always seemed to cool and collected. It often made him forget that Shiro had gone through his own traumas, too. Lance’s voice faded into the background as he started to talk, all of Keith’s focus staying on the man that he had just realized he had feelings for.

The Castle’s alarm caught his attention enough to break his focus. They all turned to find the screen lighting up on the wall behind them.

“What is that?” Keith asked.

“The ship is starting a wormhole jump,” Coran said, dumbfounded.

They all looked at each other before hurrying back down the hallway. Keith watched as Shiro took the lead, pushing his feelings to the side yet again for the good of the group. As soon as they figured this out, Keith had every intention of sitting down and talking to Shiro. Even if it wasn’t about his own feelings, he wanted to make sure that Shiro was okay after everything that had happened. He had to know that he was okay

He understood what it meant. Having to move on to the next mission and save the Castle from being piloted into a star. Everything was a blur and any concerns and worries that Keith was holding were momentarily pushed from his mind in favor of saving them all.

It was more than a little bit of a relief when they were able to make a wormhole jump away from the star. He tried to find Shiro as soon as they were back inside, but he was too late in waiting outside of Shiro’s hanger. He cursed under his breath and hurried back to their rooms thinking that he might’ve already gone back to change. He skidded to a stop in front of Shiro’s room and knocked desperately.

There wasn’t a sound that came from within. Not even the creak of a body shifting on a mattress or the sound of water running in the bathroom. Keith slipped into his own room and pulled off his uniform and threw on his pants and shirt, only sparing a passing thought on the fact that he’d abandoned his jacket on the training deck. He could retrieve that later.

Instead, he hurried back through the hallways, trying to think of where he could’ve gone. He thought about the alcoves where he would think and raced towards them in the desperate hope that he might find Shiro to be hiding out in one of those.

The first several that he checked were empty and he was nearly ready to give up and just cry out for Shiro when he found him folded up on one of the cushions. Keith must’ve made some noise because Shiro’s head snapped towards him and before he could mask the emotions that he was experiencing, Keith saw the raw pain in his eyes.

“Keith? Is everything okay? Nothing happened did it? Is it the Castle again?” he asked.

Keith’s hands curled at his sides. Because Shiro really was an idiot, putting his own feelings to the side for the sake of everything else. Unaware that it was okay for him to feel.

“You’re an idiot,” he muttered, stalking into the alcove.

Confusion replaced everything as Shiro just stared at him. “I’m…what?”

“You’re an idiot,” Keith repeated, sitting down next to him. “Nothing happened. I came to make sure that _you’re_ okay.”

Shiro’s confusion fell away and he smiled. Keith noticed that it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m fine. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Are you _sure_?” Keith pressed. “Because you seemed pretty upset when we found you after you’d ejected Sendak. Some pretty crazy stuff happened to all of us and from the way you looked, it didn’t seem like anything that could just be taken lightly. I want to know that you’re okay, Shiro. And you didn’t exactly seem like it earlier. It’s okay to talk about it. We’re…friends. I know that I’ve been dealing with a lot, but it’s okay for you to talk to me you know.”

Shiro stared at him, searching his face. Keith wondered if he was really that afraid of being rejected and how many people have failed to listen to him in his lifetime.

He sighed. “Okay. I guess it was the Castle that was causing it, but Sendak was…talking to me. I was trying to get him to reveal what he knew, but then he started talking about how I could never be a Paladin. That I was broken and just a pawn for the Galra Empire. He talked about how there was no way that I could ever be good or help save the universe. He said that because of what happened to me there was no way that you…” Shiro paused and sucked in a breath before letting it out in a saddening sigh. “That there was no way that you could ever love me.”

Shiro looked at him then, gaze pained and mirroring the feelings that were no doubt waging inside of him. Keith felt his heart squeeze. He remembered what he’d wanted to talk about. What he’d been so desperate to tell him earlier. He reached for Shiro and pulled him into a hug. Shiro sagged against him then and buried his face in the crook of his neck.

Keith closed his eyes at the feeling of overwhelming sadness that was coursing through his body. He opened his mouth. He had to tell him. He had to reassure him that Sendak’s claims were useless because he did care for him. He wasn’t sure if it was love yet, but he definitely had feelings for him.

“Shiro, I-“

“All Paladins to the control deck,” Coran’s voice broke in over the intercom. “All Paladins report to the control deck.”

“I guess we should get going then,” Keith said. They pulled apart and he was glad to see that Shiro had calmed down. The sadness and fear having become mixed with love.

“Are you sure? You sounded like you had something to say,” Shiro argued.

“Don’t worry, it can wait,” Keith said.

“Then we shouldn’t keep them waiting, I guess,” Shiro said, standing.

Keith followed him out of the alcove. It was okay. He could wait. He’d have time later. Whatever they were being called for was probably important. He chose not to think about how much like Shiro he sounded in that moment.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter kind of sucks. It wasn't until I was editing that I was like "I probably could've scrapped all of it and put together something better." But I wanted to give you guys a chapter this week instead of making you wait so have this piece of crap.
> 
> Next chapter should be better. 
> 
> And this fic is officially a year old! I published the first chapter on July 1, 2016! Woo!! (Again, sorry for the update)
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Pidge was already seated and tapping away at a screen when Keith and Shiro walked onto the main deck. They hadn’t spoken since the alcove as much as Keith was itching to talk to him.

“You’ve finally made it, wonderful,” Allura said, giving them a smile. “Pidge was just about to explain what she found in Sendak’s memories.”

“I cross-referenced what we got from him with the information from the ship that crashed back on Arus. I couldn’t figure out what most of it meant, but there was one thing that kept coming up and I think it might be an intergalactic way-station of some sort. It basically seems like it’s a place where ships come for inventory and refueling before making the final landing at their destinations,” Pidge explained. “I can’t be too sure of everything that goes on there so I’m not even sure if it’s a good description or not.”

“That’s more information than we had on the place,” Shiro said. “Good job, Pidge.”

“Thanks!” she said, brightly.

“If you give me the coordinates, I can pull it up on the deep-space scanner. We might be able to get a better idea of just what this is that you’ve found,” Coran broke in, walking over to the main control panel.

“Sure. It’s in the Farkley quadrant at 160.4 quarterly degrees by 23.6 sexta.”

Keith watched as Coran typed in what she said and pulled up an image of three planets. “Is it supposed to look like that?” he asked.

“No,” Coran said. “There’s nothing here. The scanners aren’t picking up anything, I don’t understand.”

“Is it possible that there’s still something there? Something that we just can’t see? It wouldn’t hurt to take a look, would it, Princess Allura?” Pidge asked.

“No, it wouldn’t. There’s a reason why this coordinates are listed. We shouldn’t have any problem making a wormhole jump nearby without being detected as long as we’re far enough from the planets. We can fly closer with our shields up and maintain a cover. Coran, lock in the coordinates. Prepare for the jump,” she said, stepping up onto her podium and resting her hands on the controls.

The Castle passed through the wormhole quickly and settled at a distance from the planets.

“Take us in closer and use the planets to cover us in case there’s something between them,” she instructed.

Coran piloted towards the planet carefully and slowly wove his way around the planet. Everyone gasped when the station came into view.

“It seems that they were using the electromagnetic field naturally generated by the planets to hide their location from the deep-space scanners. Anyone who doesn’t know the exact coordinates wouldn’t be able to detect the station,” Coran explained as he looked over the data on the computer.

“What do they have that’s so important that they would need to hide themselves like that?” Keith asked.

“There’s only one way to find out,” Allura said. “We’re going to go down to that station and find out what information they have. We can enter through the central control building since that will be the one place we can manage to get in without being detected.”

“Wait…did you say ‘we’?”  Keith asked, staring at her.

“Princess, I’d rather you stay on board the Castle,” Coran spoke up, the worry clear on his face.

“I’m going. There’s nothing you can say that’s going to stop me. It’ll be easier for all of you if you just accept that now.”

Everyone stared at Shiro hoping that he would say something to convince her to stay, but he just shrugged.

“Fine, suit up.”

Allura smiled at Shiro. “Get changed and get to the Green Lion’s hanger. We’ll head out immediately,” she instructed.

The Paladins hurried from the main deck and made a beeline for their various rooms. Keith had already pulled his jacket form his shoulders by the time the door of his room slid shut behind him. He changed quickly, having gotten plenty of practice over the past several days. He clipped his bayard to his hip and slipped his helmet under his arm as he hurried back towards the hangers with everyone else.

Allura was waiting for them by the Green Lion and when Pidge arrived they all clambered inside. Keith stuffed his helmet onto his head when they were inside. The cockpit was pretty crowded with all of them inside, but it wasn’t anything that they hadn’t dealt with before. They weren’t going to have a long ride anyway and were going to avoid fighting at all cost.

The group stood in silence as Pidge flew them in below the planet that was closest to them. Coran gave updates on his actions over the comm, but other than that, they weren’t talking. It was strange using the cloaking device because it felt like they should still be seen, but no one took notice of them.

Keith was more than a little glad when they landed behind the control center. They were safe for the moment and just needed to focus on sneaking inside without being seen by the few sentries that were on the base. They slipped down the rock face behind the central command center easily. They stuck close to the sides of the building and worked their way to the front door, not coming into contact with anyone. They assumed that all of the officers must be on the main deck for the most part, but still remained cautious.

The area they were infiltrating was small and they found the main deck quickly. The officers were all facing away from the door and Shiro moved forward quietly and caught the attention of who they assumed was in charge. He sent him flying and Hunk and Lance quickly immobilized the two sentries that were on the deck, too.

Pidge hurried forward and immediately got to work connecting her laptop to the interface so she could access the system and all of the information stored in the databanks. While they worked behind the control panel, Keith kept a watch on the front of the base to make sure they wouldn’t be surprised by anyone coming up to the command center. Everything stayed clear so they either took out the soldiers who’d been there quickly enough that they couldn’t sent out a signal or they didn’t have those types of safeguards in place.

“How’s it look, Keith?” Shiro asked from where he was seated on the floor with everyone else.

“All clear,” he said, scanning the base another time.

Pidge started to collect data when a shadow fell over the top of the base.

“It looks like we’ve got company,” Keith said, before ducking down while the ship lowered itself to land on the base.

“Stay low. We need this intel,” Shiro said and dove to the side when a video window pulled up on the screen. The officer that was on the call made a confused sound, but didn’t move away.

“I think he’s waiting for a signal or something,” Lance supplied.

“I got it,” Hunk said, crawling out from under the control desk that he was hiding under. He pulled one of the downed sentries with him and propped him up, using his hand to made several gestures on the screen. The air was tense as they waited to see what the officer on the call would do, but he merely threw up a hand and ended the call. Everyone let out a sigh of relief that they’d gotten past that little bump.

Pidge opened her computer again. “Download complete, but I’m not seeing anything that can help us here. It’s just a schedule of the ships that are set to come through the port here and nothing more. It’s too low-level of a place to have anything that we can really use.”

“Pidge, do you know where the ship that just landed is headed?” Allura asked.

Pidge scanned the data in front of her. “It’s scheduled to be here for thirty minutes and then head off for central command.”

Allura stood from where she’d been crouched. “That’s where they have the information we need. I’m going to sneak aboard that ship and get it for us.”

“How are you going to get in?” Keith asked.

Allura smiled and removed her helmet. She closed her eyes and waited and Keith was ready to ask just what she was going to do when she began to grow taller and her skin became a deep purple. Everyone gasped at the change.

“I can’t let you go in there alone,” Shiro said.

“Excuse me?” Allura asked, affronted. “I do not need your permission.”

Everyone turned to look at Shiro and gave him a look that they were all very unimpressed with his attempt to reason with Allura after he’d been so ready to bring her with them earlier.

“It’s too dangerous. I’m going in with you,” he said walking forward.

“He’s right. You’re going to need Shiro’s hand. Since it’s made from Galra tech it’s the only thing that will allow us to interface with their systems and gather intel,” Pidge explained. “I can monitor the download remotely from here so that we know the status and if it’s working.”

“Fine, you can come,” Allura conceded. “Let’s go.”

Keith watched as Allura began to strip the officer of his uniform. She layered it on top of her uniform and once the helmet was on, she really did look like a Galra soldier. They were just about ready to leave when Keith finally voiced something that had been bothering him since Shiro volunteered.

“Wait. How are you going to get Shiro on board?” he asked.

Allura and Shiro looked at each other for a moment. “I think I might know how to get around that. There are no doubt several crates lying around the base that would be used to put things on transport. Since this base is located on an asteroid, they would need to get waste off of it and bring supplies on. If we can find one of these crates, Shiro can ride inside of it until we’re on board the ship.”

“You guys better hurry if you want to make it on and off that ship,” Hunk said from where he was watching. “We’ve already spent enough time talking things over as it is. We can’t waste any more time.”

Shiro and Allura nodded before hurrying off. It wasn’t long before they saw her walk across the main platform in front of the building and head towards the ship. Keith held his breath when they were stopped at the start of the walkway into the ship, wondering if they could tell that she wasn’t actually Galra. He was relieved when it seemed the officers were only letting the yellow containers pass before letting them continue up the ramp.

“They’re in,” Lance said, sounding confident, but Keith could tell that he was relieved, too.

“What do you think they have in all of those containers?” Keith asked, attention turning to them now that he couldn’t keep an eye on Shiro and Allura.

“Well, I suspect it’s sporks,” said Hunk.

Keith stared at him, but decided not to comment. Sometimes it was best to let Hunk’s comments be.

Pidge was busy hooking up wires to the downed sentry and began typing on her computer to hack into its system.

“Woah, check out that guy,” Keith pointed out at the appearance of someone new. “Whatever’s happening here that needs to keep the base kept secret must have something to do with that scary dude. I’m gonna go check it out.”

Lance protested behind him, but he ignored what he was saying in favor of leaving them behind. He would need to hurry to make sure that he didn’t lose sight of the cloaked person. He made his way around the central building quickly and saw the containers being directed towards another building in the back. Keith hurried across the roofs and quickly closed the distance until he was following just behind where they were.

The doors to the rear building opened long enough to let them through before they were closing again. Keith used the jetpack on his suit to jump from the rooftops and slip through the doors just before they closed. The hallway behind them was dark and he slid up against the wall to keep hidden as best he could. There was a yellow haze coming from the room at the end and he saw the guards from earlier headed back in his direction.

He activated his bayard and took them down quickly without making a sound. He slowly moved to the end of the hallway so that he could see what was in the room beyond and found shelves lined with the yellow containers. He watched as one of them was brought down a conveyor belt and emptied into a sphere. The person in the cloak did something that caused the yellow liquid to glow a purple color. He didn’t know if he was ready to call it magic, but there was really no other way to describe what he was seeing. He’d have to remember to ask Coran and Allura about it later.

The liquid thickened and was stored into another, much smaller container, keeping its purple color. The tray that it was on came toward him and once it passed into the hallway Keith pulled it from the tray, intent on keeping it with him so that they could find out exactly what it was.

When he turned around to make sure he hadn’t been spotted, he saw that the cloaked person had disappeared. Feeling his stomach drop, he turned, but was shoved across the floor when the person appeared behind him. The container fell from his hand and was placed on a different tray.

Keith activated his bayard and ran forward to attack. The person dodged his attacks easily, able to teleport from one place to another. He narrowly missed getting hit with the purple electricity or lightning from earlier and used his jetpack to get out of the way. As smoke billowed around him, he used it to cover himself and launched himself up to the platform where the magician, since there was nothing else he could really call them, was standing.

The magician blocked his sword and sent him flying back onto a higher shelf. The lightning that was used to block him rebounded and burned Keith’s hand. He clutched at the skin where his glove had been singed away and looked at the odd purple burn that was there. The skin tingled like it was on fire and he briefly hoped that there would be some way to treat it when he got back to the Castle.

“Pidge,” he called over the comm. “I need an extraction, now. Hurry,” he said, desperately.

The magician sent another blast of lightning his way and Keith used his jetpack to dodge and fly around the upper shelf. The magician followed his path and he barely managed to stay out of his way. He put up his shield just in time to avoid getting hit with another blast that sent him flying down to one of the lower shelves. He slid onto the conveyor belt behind one of the containers, activating his bayard again when the magician appeared behind him.

He waited for the next blast to hit him, but an explosion rocked the building and it went sideways, hitting the container instead as the Green Lion landed on the floor behind him. The yellow liquid splashed over him and Pidge’s entrance had caused the magician to disappear. He boarded quickly, only taking a moment to look down at his hand where the burns began to heal before heading up to join his friends in the cockpit.

They left the asteroid just as an escape pod came free from the ship Shiro and Allura were on before it headed into hyperspace. Pidge made her way to the pod and carefully maneuvered behind it so that they could board. The silence was long as they waited. Shiro walked into the cockpit. Alone.  

“Where’s Allura?” Keith asked, looking behind him.

Shiro closed his eyes and braced himself against the back of Pidge’s chair.

“Shiro?” Lance asked when he didn’t answer.

“She sacrificed herself to save me. We can’t let Zarkon get Allura. We have to go save her.”

Silence fell between them as Pidge silently piloted back to the ship.

“What happened to your glove?” Shiro asked, taking notice of Keith’s hand.

He instinctively moved it behind his back, only remembering after he did so that the burns had healed and his hand looked fine. “I lost it. Sort of. It got ripped off.”

Shiro nodded as they approached the Castle. Keith watched him and bit his lip. Everything had gotten out of control so quickly and now they were going to have to face off with the toughest and most ruthless person in the universe. And Shiro had been right there when Allura had been taken. He couldn’t imagine what he must be feeling about all of this.

As soon as they were on board, they rushed to the main deck, not even taking a moment to breathe.

“Pidge, start analyzing that data and get a location on Zarkon’s central command. The sooner we know where we’re going the sooner we can put together a plan and get in there,” Shiro said, pulling off his helmet.

“On it,” she said, hurrying over to her chair.

“What happened?” Coran asked. “What’s going on? Where’s Allura?”

“I’m sorry Coran, but she was taken. We’re going to do everything we can to get her back. We won’t let Zarkon have her,” Shiro explained.

Coran looked over all of them and nodded, narrowing his eyes. “Let’s figure out what to do.”


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know that it's been a while, but things were super crazy with work and I barely had enough time to sleep let alone do anything else. But I'm back with this chapter now and things should calm back down now that I'm headed back to school and don't have to work as much. :D
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> <3 MOLIM

_Keith’s body felt like it was on fire. Every touch sent a jolt of electricity searing through his blood. Sweet, torturous pleasure was lying just underneath his skin, waiting to break out and make itself known. He was drowning in it. Drowning in the sweet suffering that always came with being with Shiro._

_“Shiro,” Keith gasped as his hands squeezed his hips._

_“Shh,” Shiro said with a smile. He leaned forward, making the stretch even more prominent and captured Keith’s lips in a kiss._

_Keith wrapped his arms around Shiro’s shoulders, holding him close despite their sweat-slicked bodies and his neglected erection._

_“I love you Keith,” Shiro said, breaking off the kiss so he could pull away. “I love you so much.”_

_Keith looked up at his boyfriend fondly, the words warming the places in his heart that he thought would end up being cold and dark forever. “I love you, too. I always will, Takashi.”_

_Shrio’s face lit up with a sweet smile despite their intimate situation. He slowly rolled his hips, making Keith’s eyelids flutter shut as his lips parted on a gasp. He let his legs fall just a little wider as Shiro pulled back slowly and-_

Keith gasped and sat forward abruptly. He ran a hand through his hair, cringing as it came away damp with sweat and tried to force his heartrate and breathing to calm down. The dream had felt more like a memory than anything. He recognized Shiro, but found that he was less muscular and was missing the scar on his nose and the white streak in his hair.

He wasn’t entirely sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but knew that he didn’t have time to worry about that as the past few days came rushing back to him. He looked around his Lion and found that he was staring at what appeared to be a barren planet. None of the other Lions were nearby and he didn’t see the Castle sitting on the landscape.

He opened the communication link in his helmet and hoped that there was someone out there who he could contact.

“Hello? Anyone? Allura? Coran? Pidge? Hunk? Lance? Shiro?”

Nothing but static echoed back to him and he was ready to groan. He had no idea how to contact the Castle if he was alone. And he wasn’t exactly looking forward to having to wait for someone to come and rescue him from whatever planet that he was on.

“Keith? Keith is that you?”

Keith’s heart picked up again. All of the emotions and pent up energy came slamming back into him at the sound of Shiro’s voice.

“Shiro?” he asked excitedly. “Is that really you?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I fell down a ravine and got hurt pretty badly.”

Keith reached for the handles. “Okay, okay. Don’t worry, I’m coming for you. Just stay where you are and I’ll be there in a minute.”

He readjusted the handles and waited for his Lion to respond. When nothing happened, he frowned and moved them again, getting no response.

Keith sighed. “Looks like my Lion isn’t working. I’ll have to get to you on foot, but it shouldn’t take me too long based on the map in my helmet.”

He hurried from his Lion and hit the dusty planet floor at a run, unable to keep the smile from his face even if he was trying. Which he wasn’t. Things had gotten crazy when they attacked Zarkon’s base and rescued Allura, but they were safe now. As safe as they could be on an alien planet, anyway.

“Are you okay, Keith?” Shiro asked. Keith frowned. He sounded out of breath. He knew that he’d been injured, but he didn’t like to think that Shiro was completely helpless. He was strong. Probably the strongest of all of them. He’d been through so much and Keith didn’t want him to suffer any more than he already had. And he hated to think that he was one of the reasons why Shiro had suffered.

“I’m fine. I’m not hurt, if that’s what you’re wondering. I just want to get across this _freaking planet_ so that you’re not alone.” Keith grit his teeth as he approached a ravine and dodged the waterspouts that burst from the planet’s surface. Taking a deep breath, he made a careful step and used the waterspout to push himself through the air and across the empty expanse.

It was thrilling to let himself become weightless and soar through the air. It was similar to how he felt when he was flying his Lion, but didn’t have quite the same effect.

“I…” Shiro began. “Oh no.”

“Shiro? What’s wrong?”

“Trouble. Some animals or something. I’m not sure, but I just know that they do not look friendly.”

“Hang in there, Shiro. I’m almost there.”

Keith heard the sound of Shiro’s breath hitching and a broken groan. Keith increased his pace and started sprinting across the planet’s surface. He checked his map and saw that he was getting closer to Shiro’s Lion. Shiro was a little further away, moving at a steady pace to try and avoid the animals that were chasing after him.

“Keith…”

“I’m almost there!” Keith said, becoming more desperate. He slid down the side of the ravine and ran towards the black Lion. “Come on, we have to go save Shiro.”

“Keith…” Shiro said, sounding more desperate than the last time. His breathing was becoming more labored and Keith was worried that he might be on the verge of a panic attack.

“We have to save Shiro. He needs our help!” Keith said, desperately.

For one painful moment, nothing happened. He nearly sagged in relief when the Black Lion came to life and opened its mouth. Keith ran inside and sat down in the pilot seat as the Lion pushed itself to its feet. He jammed the controls forward and darted forward, covering the distance between where he was and where Shiro was located on the map quickly.

His heart nearly stopped at the sight of Shiro surrounded by three very large animals. He descended quickly, covering Shiro and forcing the animals to scurry off. Keith wasn’t sure how long they’d be gone, but it was a start. He sat back heavily and looked down at his shaking hands.

Keith balled them into fists, trying desperately to get his breathing under control until he realized that he was still sitting in the Lion and Shiro was still outside. He scrambled from the seat, nearly tripping over himself until he was jumping to the ground outside. Shiro had a hand on his knees and was standing weakly. Keith could just make out the nasty looking wound on his side underneath where his hand was pressed against it.

“Keith…” Shiro said, relieved.

Keith darted forward and cupped Shiro’s face in his hands, pausing so there was just barely any distance between them. He stared into Shiro’s eyes. All of the feelings that had been warring inside of him for the past few days finally settled into place. He felt he was where he needed to be and that he only needed to make things right since everything had gotten so screwed up.

“Keith?” Shiro asked, brow furrowing in confusion.

Keith tugged gently until Shiro dipped his head enough so that he could push himself onto his toes and slot their lips together. Shiro stood frozen against him and stared at him with wide eyes as Keith slowly pulled away.

“Keith? What?”

“I like you. I still don’t have my memories back, but…I know that I like you. And I want to be with you. That is…if you still want to be with me.”

Keith cleared his throat awkwardly and felt his cheeks heat up at the words. He made to step back when Shiro didn’t say anything, but was stopped when Shiro’s free arm looped around his waist and pulled him close.

“I want nothing more than to be with you. And it’s okay that you don’t have your memories back, because I still love you for who you are.”

Shiro claimed his lips for another kiss and Keith gripped his shoulders tightly, overwhelmed by everything: the fighting from the day before, his feelings, and the last dredges of adrenaline from having to save Shiro.

Shiro pulled back with a sigh and leaned their foreheads together. Keith couldn’t help the smile that pulled at his lips.

“We should get you somewhere else. You don’t need to aggravate that injury any further until Coran and Allura get to us.”

“Okay,” Shiro said softly. “As long as I’m with you, I’ll go anywhere.”

Keith felt his face heat up and pulled one of Shiro’s arms around his shoulders and wrapped his other around Shiro’s waist, careful to avoid the injury and avoid pulling at the sensitive skin around it. They shuffled towards the ramp leading up to Shiro’s Lion and climbed up slowly. Keith set Shiro down gently in the pilot’s seat and stepped back.

“Where’s your Lion? We should go pick it up,” Shiro said, taking hold of the controls.

“Head east out of the ravine and we should make it there pretty quickly. I’d say it’s only a couple of miles away at most.”

Shiro pulled them out of the abyss and above the planet’s surface. From above, it looked rather pleasant, the colors melding together to create a beautiful purple. They spotted his Lion easily and flew towards it, covering the distance quickly.

“It felt like so much longer when I was having to cover this expanse on foot,” Keith muttered under his breath.

Shiro breathed a laugh and landed next to the Red Lion. Keith scrambled out and hurried over to his Lion, placing a hand on its muzzle. It opened its mouth easily and let Keith inside. His Lion came to life as he walked up to the pilot’s chair and he was more than a little relieved to see that everything was working again. He settled down in the chair.

“Looks like everything’s working, Shiro. Let’s head to a place that’s a little more sheltered. After what happened earlier, we don’t exactly know what’s out here and whether or not the other animals or inhabitants are as friendly as the ones you’ve already met.”

“Agreed. There seems to be a sort of outcropping further south that might be useful as shelter. If we head that way, we can set up some sort of camp for the time being.”

Keith pulled up the map of the planet’s surface and saw what Shiro was talking about. He pushed his Lion upright until it was standing and walked in the direction of the outcropping with Shiro falling into step beside him. As much as two giant robot lions could be in step that is.

They covered the distance without catching sight of any other living creatures and set their Lions down in front of a wall of rock. Keith hurried to get out of his Lion and was just in time to catch Shiro as he stumbled while walking down the plank to the planet’s surface.

“Easy, Shiro,” he said, pulling him tightly against his side.

Shiro sighed as Keith helped him to sit back against the rock that they’d stopped next to. “Thanks, Keith.”

Keith took the seat next to him and took one of Shiro’s hands in his own to give him something to focus on. He could see Shiro watching him out of the corner of his eye and knew that he should say something. He just wasn’t sure what yet.

“Do you think that I’ll ever get my memories back?” he asked, quietly.

Shiro threaded their fingers together. “Definitely. Maybe you could try the healing pod again. If Coran changes the calibration, you might have more success this time around.”

“Yeah…” Keith’s mind wandered back to earlier and how he’d woken up in his Lion after the battle. He felt himself flush at the memories and wondered if that was just some fabrication of his own mind or if they were actually real.

“Shiro?”

“Keith?”

Keith rolled his eyes. “This might be a very awkward question, but…when we were dating, before well everything that happened with my memory being wiped…”

Shiro squeezed his hand. “Yeah?”

Keith let out a heavy breath.

“You can ask me about what’s on your mind. I’m more than happy to answer any questions that you might have about our relationship.”

“This one might be a little awkward,” he muttered. “Okay, so…before I woke up in my Lion here…I had this dream. Or memory. I’m not entirely sure which, but it definitely felt like a memory.”

“That’s great! If it’s actually a memory that you were experiencing then it can’t be too long before the rest of them come back! Or if it’s a break in the block that’s keeping your memories trapped then maybe the healing pod can finally remove it.”

Keith flushed. “Um yeah. The only problem is that I need you to tell me if it’s a memory or just a really invasive dream.”

“What was it?” Shiro asked, looking at him expectantly, seemingly all pain and discomfort from his injury forgotten.

Keith took a steadying breath and started down at his hands, his face becoming warmer as he began to talk. “Well…it was the two of us. Obviously. Um…we were in bed together. Not just like sleeping or cuddling or talking… We were having…sex.”

“Oh,” Shiro said tightly.

Keith peeked up at Shiro from the corner of his eye and found a strange expression on his face that he couldn’t decipher.

“Well,” he said, clearing his throat. “There’s a good chance that you were remembering an actual memory. Because we did do that. Before. Are there any other details that you remember? Maybe something that could help nail down when this might’ve happened?”

Keith sighed and closed his eyes, trying to dredge up what he’d remembered earlier. He felt a stab of irritation at their own awkwardness. He’d just admitted to Shiro that he liked him and they were already dating before everything happened. He felt like there shouldn’t be any reason for there to be any awkwardness between them.

The memories came back in shards at first before developing into a whole picture. Keith did his best to focus on Shiro and the details of their surroundings.

“We’re…in the shack,” Keith said slowly. “You don’t have a white streak in your hair, which is shorter. And the scar on your nose is gone, too. It’s dark outside. I’m not sure if that one helps, but it’s one more thing I could pick out.”

He let the memory fade and opened his eyes slowly. Shiro had tilted his head back so it was resting against the rocks they were sitting against. His eyelids were halfway lowered and he was looking at Keith fondly, and previous traces of awkwardness gone.

“What?” Keith asked, suddenly self-conscious.

Shiro shook his head. “Nothing. But that’s definitely a memory if you’re remembering me without the scar and with the shorter hair. That was probably closer to when we left on the Kerberos mission. We had more of a chance to spend time together then. And we liked the privacy of the shack to our rooms in the Garrison. Thin walls and all that. But…I think that you might be closer to getting your memories back.”

Keith felt relief wash through him. He hadn’t been actively hoping for Shiro to confirm his suspicions, but he needed it far more than he’d realized. It was scary how much he’d wanted it to be true, despite the content of the memory. It gave him something concrete. And even if it was only a small moment in time that didn’t reflect anything much more significant in his life than a relationship, it was another part of himself that he now knew to be true.

He didn’t realize that he’d started shaking until Shiro reached out to him and pulled him up against his side, only letting out a small groan as the movement aggravated his injury.

“Keith, baby?” he asked, worried.

Keith wrapped his arms tightly around himself. “I just…I’ve been going without my memories for so long that this just doesn’t seem real. I know that it’s still a longshot, but…”

“But it’s something,” Shiro finished quietly.

Keith nodded and Shiro gently kissed the side of his head.

A bright blue light came to life above their heads and Keith looked up to see the wormhole opening above them. The Green Lion exited the wormhole and he turned to look at Shiro, unable to stop his grin. Shiro smiled gently, like he was irritated at the interruption because he wanted to say something else. The Castle exited behind Pidge and stayed in orbit around the planet.

Keith turned and helped Shiro to his feet and walked him to the Black Lion. It was a struggle, but that made it to the pilot’s seat.

“Are you going to be okay to fly this thing?” Keith asked, hands hovering around him, unsure of what to do.

“Yeah,” Shiro said, carefully adjusting how he was sitting in the chair. “It’s not too far so I should be able to make it.”

“Okay,” Keith said, unsure. “I’ll follow right behind you in Red. Let me know if your condition worsens or you need help.”

Shiro nodded and Keith hurried over to his Lion. He got himself settled and took off behind Shiro. They flew up to the Castle slowly, taking an easy pace since they weren’t in too much danger, Shiro’s glowing alien wound aside.

The docked quickly and Keith rushed from his Lion to help Shiro from his. Pidge ran over as he was helping him back to the Castle floor.

“Tell Coran to get a healing pod ready. Shiro’s hurt,” Keith said before Pidge could open her mouth.

She nodded and hurried away, muttering into her communicator as she went.

Keith was torn between wanting to hurry and make sure that Shiro was safe and taking his time so that he wouldn’t aggravate Shiro’s injury any further.

“How are you holding up?” Keith asked as they turned down the main hallway.

“Could be better, but at least you’re here with me.”

“We’re almost there, just hold on a little longer.”

Keith was more than a little relieved when he walked into the med bay and everyone was waiting for him.

“Get him into the pod,” Allura directed. “We need to get him stabilized immediately.”

Keith nodded and helped Shiro step into the healing pod. He leaned heavily against the back wall, eyes never leaving Keith even as he was sealed inside and put under. Keith felt his heart clench painfully, finally grasping the severity of the situation now that he was fully out of danger.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally back with a new chapter. Life got busy and I didn't have time to write so that's why I was gone for so long. I had a lot of fun putting this chapter together so I hope that you enjoy it! ^.^
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Keith had his arms crossed tightly over his chest and watched Shiro’s still form in the healing pod.

“How are you holding up?” Allura asked, stepping up next to him.

He sighed. “I’m…okay. I just want Shiro to be better after everything that’s happened. I mean, he’s been through so much and attacked again when we were on that planet. I was really worried that something serious was going to happen to him.”

“I know, Keith. But the readings on the pod are extremely good and I’m sure he’s going to be perfectly fine. He should only need a little bit longer and then he’ll be ready to come out.”

Keith nodded. “There’s one other thing…”

“What is it?” she prompted.

“I think something caused a break to happen in my memories. Before I woke up on the planet, I was reliving something between me and Shiro before the Kerberos mission. I talked it over with Shiro and he said that it was definitely a memory. I think that it might be enough that the healing pod can break through the rest and give me my memories back.”

“You’re ready to try it again?”

“Yeah,” he said, dropping his arms and squaring his shoulders. “I really want to.”

Allura nodded. “I know that we had some problems after the first attempt, but I think with the recalibrated settings and this new development it might be enough to heal the previous damage that’s been done. When are you wanting to do this?”

“As soon as possible.”

“After Shiro is finished with his session we can put you in your own pod. Not that I think anything would go wrong, but I’d rather only use one pod at a time in case anything happens. And I’m sure that you would prefer to know Shiro’s okay before going into a pod.”

Keith blushed. “Yeah, that would make me feel better. And it would help to have him waiting for me after I get out. Whatever the result.”

Allura smiled. “Perfect. I’ll have the pod ready to go once Shiro has finished his treatment. If you’d like to go eat something or wait here, you’re more than welcome to do so. I need to go and check on Pidge’s findings. She’s still looking for Lance and Hunk, but we should be able to find them soon.”

Keith nodded. “Yeah, go. I’ll be fine here and if anything changes, I’ll let you know.”

“I’ll be back soon, Keith.”

She left, shoes clicking against the floor as she made her exit and Keith turned his attention back to the pod. He was glad that Shiro had a chance to look so peaceful and hoped that there weren’t any awful memories being dredged up by the process, but he wouldn’t know until after he came out. He just hoped that his treatment would be successful too and that he and Shiro could go back to living their lives as normally as possible while trying to save the universe.

~~

Allura returned to the med bay seconds before Shiro woke up. The lid of the pod disappeared with a hiss and Keith bit his lip. He forced himself to keep from stepping forward and watched as Allura approached instead.

“Shiro?” she asked.

He groaned and squeezed his eyes further shut before blinking them open. He raised a hand and rubbed it against his face before sighing.

“How are you feeling?” Allura prompted.

“A little groggy, but much better than I was before.”

“Good, good. Are you hungry? I know you were unconscious for a while, but do you need more rest or sleep?”

“No more sleep, I’m fine. I could use something to eat.”

Allura nodded. “I’m sure Coran will be more than willing to prepare some food for you. Keith and I were talking earlier and he’d like to try the healing pod again. Do you want to eat before that or while you’re waiting?”

Shiro looked over at Keith for the first time, gaze lingering heavily as a smile pulled at his lips. “I’ll stay here,” he said, addressing Allura even as his gaze never strayed from Keith. Keith’s teeth dug more harshly into his lip to keep from smiling. “If Coran could bring me something to eat here I’d really appreciate it.”

“Of course, Shiro. Anything you need,” Allura agreed easily. She turned to look at Keith. “If you’re ready to get started, you can go change into one of the medical suits and we’ll get you loaded into a pod.”

Keith’s breath left him in a rush. “Okay.” He glanced at Shiro before forcing his feet to move towards the changing room. Several suits were folded on the shelves and he pulled one down in his size. He squeezed the material in his hands, nerves retuning with a vengeance.

“Keith?”

He turned and found Shiro standing in the doorway watching him.

“You okay?”

He nodded and looked back down at the suit in his hands. “Yeah. Just nervous. There’s so many things that could go wrong and I don’t want to hope for anything, but…”

“But you can’t help what you’re feeling.”

Shiro walked over to him and covered his hands with his own. “It’s going to be okay, Keith. Even if it doesn’t work, we’re going to find another way.”

“I know we can look for other ways to fix this, but I want this to work. I want it to work so much.”

“Shh, I know, I know.” Shiro cupped the side of Keith’s face and held his gaze. “I love you either way, okay?”

Keith rocked up onto his toes and met Shiro’s lips as they tilted towards his own. Shiro pulled him close, crushing his arms between them where they were still tangled in the medical uniform. Shiro had one arm wrapped tightly around his waist and the other cradled the back of his head. Keith let himself be held and poured every ounce of his feelings into the kiss.

Shiro pulled back first and leaned their foreheads together. “You sure you’re okay to do this?” he asked.

“Yes. I have to be, don’t I? But I’m not doing it alone. I’ve got you.”

Shiro smiled. “And there’s nothing that’s going to keep me away. Come on, you should get changed so we can get you your memories back.”

Keith smiled and shoved Shiro back out of the changing room. He stripped, leaving his clothes in a small pile before stepping into the medical uniform. It fit snugly around his legs and waist and he was a little self-conscious of how form-fitting it was when he zipped it up.

He left the changing room behind and walked back towards the circle of pods. Allura smiled at him and directed him towards the waiting pod.

“Ready whenever you are,” she said.

Keith’s breath left him in a sigh and he stepped into the cold circle that would hold him while something worked at his brain to fix whatever was wrong with it.

“If anything even looks off, we’ll have you out of there in seconds, okay?”

He nodded at Allura. “I’m ready. Let’s do this.”

“Okay.”

He watched her press a few buttons on the console and waited as the cover materialized on the pod. He felt a minute sense of claustrophobia and clenched his hands to fight down the anxiety that wanted to threaten to overwhelm his senses. He felt his body relaxing against its will and drowsiness pulled at his eyelids. He didn’t fight against it and welcomed the blackness as it dragged him under.

Keith blinked his eyes several times and looked at the dark space around him. He knew that he wasn’t conscious but it was still strange to be aware of his surroundings inside of his mind. He wondered if anyone else felt this way when they were in the pod and would have to talk to Shiro about it later.

A streak of light burst past him and he gasped, backing away. It circled around and came back towards him, spiraling around his chest before coming to hover in front of his face. He reached out a finger, but it moved back, keeping out of reach. He walked towards it, following it as it moved further into the recesses of his mind.

Keith startled again when a circle of light exploded next to him. He stopped and watched as an image faded into existence in front of him.

He was smiling and laughing, something he hadn’t really done much after waking up in the Garrison so many months ago. He watched as Shiro pulled him closer like he’d done moments ago, sharing his smiles and laughter.

_“Keith…”_

He glanced over his shoulder, almost thinking that Shiro had somehow made it into his mind with him, but shook himself when he realized it was only coming from the image.

_“You’re such a dork, Shiro.”_

_“Yeah, but I’m your dork.”_

Keith rolled his eyes, mirroring the action of his memory-self even as he chuckled and grinned.

_“Unfortunately.”_

_“Hey!”_

Shiro pouted and wrapped his arms tighter around him. Memory-Keith opened his mouth to make another comment when he squawked and started laughing, kicking his legs out as Shiro lifted him off his feet and dug his fingers into his sides.

He started laughing uncontrollably at Shiro’s merciless tickling.

Keith smiled, amused by their interactions.

Another circle of light came to life a few feet away and he walked towards it, watching as the colors swirled before solidifying into a new image.

Shiro had him pressed up against a wall, kissing him fiercely. The lights were dimmed and they were both in Garrison uniforms. Shiro’s shirt was unbuttoned and memory-Keith was grasping onto the lapels of his jacket. He gasped, sucking in air when his lips moved to his neck, kissing and sucking harshly.

Keith brought a hand up to his neck and rubbed at the skin, almost feeling the prick of teeth as hickies were dusted across his skin and painted on like super novae condensing into galaxies. He felt heat surge underneath his skin as Shiro worked his uniform open and pushed his jacket from his shoulders.

Memory-Keith pulled Shiro over to the bed and laid down on the mattress. Shiro hovered over him and licked his lips, biting at the puffed skin.

_“Are you sure about this, Keith?”_

_“Absolutely. I love you, Shiro. I want to be with you.”_

Shiro nodded and gripped memory-Keith’s hips, pulling him closer. He let himself be manhandled and arched his back when he rubbed against Shiro’s thigh.

Keith shivered, feeling the wisps of electricity sing in his veins. He briefly wondered if watching a memory of him and Shiro getting off meant he was a voyeur, but he shoved the thought away considering it was the least important thing in the moment. He felt transfixed as they moved together.

Memory-Keith arched against the bed, Shiro’s grip on his hips crushing as he shuddered and groaned, low and guttural in his throat. Their pace became more frantic, memory-Keith clutching at Shiro’s shoulders.

_“Shiro. Fuck, Shiro I’m so close.”_

_“Me too.”_

Keith could make out the wet spot on his pants. It was nothing more than a small circle, but he knew that the inside of his boxers were probably a mess at that point. Memory-Keith gasped and arched up into Shiro, shuddering violently. Shiro followed a moment later and a peaceful calm came over the two of them as their high dissipated.

Keith licked his lips and blinked, finally taking his gaze from where it hadn’t moved. He let out a shuddering breath and forced his feet to move away from the image, knowing he wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about _that_ anytime soon. If that was only one case of when they were together, his mind was tripping over itself thinking about all the other ways that they must’ve spent their time together before the Kerberos mission.

His skin itched at the thought. Maybe if everything worked out he’d have cause to celebrate with Shiro later.

He moved on, looking towards the next aspect of his life that he was learning about again. This one took longer to come into existence. The image had a deep purple hue to it and was dark, almost as though there was something forbidden and mysterious about it.

Shiro wasn’t in this image. He wasn’t alone, but he was by himself in a lion’s den. Keith swallowed as he took in his struggling form, strapped down to a table, and pulling at the cuffs around his wrists. He was in a space suit and knew that this must be from his time on Kerberos. There was no other explanation for what he was seeing. And he didn’t think there were training simulators that looked like this at the Garrison.

There was a Galra soldier who pressed a panel in the wall and left him alone in the room. Keith watched as a laser descended from the ceiling and took aim at his form. Dread filled Keith’s stomach as the lights on the sides of it became brighter and brighter before a beam exploded outwards. Seconds before it came into contact with his memory-self, Keith felt a stabbing pain rupture inside of his head.

He gasped and closed his eyes, nearly falling to his knees, thinking his brain was about to explode. He couldn’t even look back at the image, he didn’t even know if the image was still there. The pain worsened, multiplying by impossible degrees until he felt like sobbing or crying out.

He did. Screamed at the darkness around him. Screamed for the pain and the lost memories and the crippled relationships. Screamed for the need to have part of himself back, but being thwarted yet again by something he couldn’t control.

Keith thought that he was going to be trapped inside of his head until the pod shut off, but he was pulled out as suddenly as the impact of his memories fracturing into or out of place.

His voice was still surrounding him. It echoed off the walls and engulfed him like fire, until there was nothing left but the pain and sorrow that had plagued him for so long. Shiro clutched onto his shoulders and shook him gently, trying to pull him out of the all-consuming agony.

“Keith. Keith! What’s wrong? Keith!” he asked.

“Here, he needs to be sedated. His pain levels on the pod went off the scale before we pulled him out,” Allura said, talking fast.

“Do whatever you need to do to help him relax. Please,” Shiro said, voice desperate.

Keith didn’t even feel the prick of a needle, if that was how Alteans administered sedatives. The only thing he knew was that the sounds died in his throat as all of his energy drained away. The pain continued to radiate through his skull, but it became less as the edges of his vision swam with darkness and he slumped against Shiro’s strong form next to him.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super excited about this chapter! It was a lot of fun to write and I hope y'all enjoy it. It's probably not what you were wanting exactly, but we'll get there in time. 
> 
> (And don't hate me for the end of this chap)
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Keith blinked, trying to clear the fuzziness from his eyes. Everything was bright. He squeezed his eyes shut and blinked them again.

“Keith, come on!”

“Shiro?” he asked. He groaned and clutched at his head.

“Keith, wake up,” he said, chuckling.

He blinked his eyes open and came face-to-face with a grinning Shiro. He looked around and found he was back in the shack in the desert, laying in his bed.

“Are you feeling better?” Shiro asked, taking a seat on the mattress next to him. He brought up a hand and ran it through his hair.

“Feeling better? What do you mean, Shiro?” he asked, fisting his hands in the blanket that was wrapped around him.

“You said you needed to lie down because your head was hurting. Are you feeling better?”

Keith furrowed his brow and pushed himself into a sitting position. “I guess so.”

Shiro smiled and cradled the side of Keith’s face in his hand, leaning in to capture his lips in a kiss. Keith couldn’t shake the confusion at why he was back home, but he felt it slowly slip away as Shiro moved their lips together gently. He felt his eyes slide shut and was more than willing to let himself be pressed back down against the bed.

But so many things didn’t make sense.

“Wait,” Keith said, pulling away.

Shiro looked at him, confused. “What’s wrong?”

“How did we back here? How did we get home?”

Shiro smiled. “What do you mean? We haven’t left. We’ve always been home. Are you sure you’re feeling alright?’

“I’m fine, but where’s Pidge and Lance and Hunk? Where’s Allura and the Castle? What happened to Voltron?”

Shiro’s brow furrowed in confusion and worry filled his gaze. “Keith are you sure you’re okay? I don’t know any of those people and I’ve never heard of Voltron. I’m worried this might be more serious than you thought it was.”

Keith huffed. “I’m fine. Nothing’s wrong with me,” he said, scooting backwards so he could cross his legs on the mattress. “I just need to know how we got here,” he said, waving at the room around them. “The last thing I remember was being pulled out of the pod on the Castle in space. Pidge was searching for Lance and Hunk because they’d been separated and you’d just come out of the pod because you were injured after we landed on a separate planet and-“

“Oh, I see what’s happened now,” Shiro said, worry falling from his face as he took hold of where Keith’s hands were moving frantically between them. “You’re talking about a dream you must’ve had while asleep. You’ll have to tell me more about it if we were in space.”

Keith stared at him and forced a smile onto his face. “Right,” he said, forcing a laugh. “Right, it was all just a dream. Funny how it felt so real.”

Shiro smiled. “You can tell me all about it over dinner, okay?” he said, leaning forward to kiss Keith again. “It’s all ready downstairs.”

Keith let himself be pulled from bed. His bare feet trudged over the rough planks of the shack as Shiro directed him toward the stairs. He hesitated when he saw the frames lining the walls towards the first floor. He slowed his pace, drawing Shiro’s gaze as he examined the frames.

There were pictures of them in the shack, having a day to themselves. There was one of them in bed, hair mussed and shirtless. There was another of them having a picnic by a rock outcropping in the desert. Their expressions were pretty much the same in all of the pictures, they were smiling and happy, gazes loving if they were looking at each other.

“Having another one of those days?” Shiro asked, catching his attention.

“I-what?” Keith asked, struggling to pull his eyes from the pictures.

“You know, one of those days where you want to lay around and look through all of the pictures we’ve taken.”

Keith shrugged, feeling his face heat up. “No, it’s fine we don’t need to.”

“Come on,” Shiro said, pulling him down the rest of the stairs. “Let’s have dinner and we can look through the pictures later.”

“Really, Shiro, it’s fine we-“

Shiro cut him off with a kiss. Keith could feel the smile that was pressed against his own lips. He chuckled as he pulled away, eyes shining. “Food first. I still want to hear all about this dream you had.”

“Right, right. The dream,” he said, forcing a smile.

Shiro sat him down in a chair and pushed it in before walking around to the other side of the table. Keith picked up his knife and fork and turned to the meal on his plate.

“So you said something about being in space?” Shiro prodded. “What was that about?”

Keith shifted in his seat. “Yeah. You see, we piloted these giant robotic lions that could come together and form this huge thing called Voltron.”

“Giant robot lions?” Shiro asked. “Sounds really high-tech.”

“We were the Paladins,” Keith smiled, remembering Pidge, Hunk, and Lance. “We had to fight this alien race called the Galra. They were hell-bent on taking over the Universe and ruling all of the alien races. It was our job to stop them.”

“Sounds dangerous,” Shiro said, propping his cheek against his fist as a gentle smile pulled at his lips.

Keith chuckled. “That’s an understatement. There were battles in space and we had to fight warships and save planets. Things never seemed to slow down. We were all kind of thrust into space and if it wasn’t for Allura and Coran who introduced us to the Lions we never would’ve made it as far as we did.”

“Who are they?”

“They’re the last surviving members of the Altean race. Their planet was destroyed by the Galra and they’d been in cryo-sleep for ten thousand years. At one point, Zarkon-he’s the leader of the Galra-captured Allura and we had to go rescue her. The two of us got separated from the others after that battle and we ended up on a planet by ourselves.”

Keith smiled own at his food at the memory. “That’s when I confessed my feelings for you and we kissed for the first time after I lost my memory.”

“Sounds romantic,” Shiro commented.

Keith glanced up through his eyelashes and found Shiro smiling at him.

He shrugged. “Sort of,” he said, chuckling. “You kind of had a burn on your stomach that would’ve killed you without treatment.”

Shiro winced. “So…not so romantic.”

“No, not exactly.”

“You said you lost your memory, what was that about?” Shiro asked.

Keith hummed. “Yeah, I lost my memory because of the Galra. Forgot my whole life and the relationship I had with you.”

“Did you ever get your memories back?”

“I-“ Keith froze. He’d woken up confused. This wasn’t his life and this wasn’t the Shiro who he’d fallen in love with. Their interactions had felt so real, drawing him into a sense of calm where he wasn’t questioning the world around him.

“Keith?” Shiro asked, frowning.

Keith stumbled backwards, causing his chair to fall over with a bang. He looked around the shack. It was so similar and yet so different from his actual home.

“Keith what’s wrong?”

He flew from the kitchen and into the living room. The walls were better kept than they had been when he’d lived there. His bulletin board was gone too. Bookshelves lined the walls and a brand new couch was pushed against the wall. Keith choked on the panic that climbed up his throat. He turned, ready to flee, but found Shiro barring his path.

“Keith, I really think you need to calm down,” he said, holding out his hands.

“No,” he said, stepping backwards. “This is wrong. This isn’t real. It can’t be.”

Shiro stepped forward, but Keith ducked under his outstretched arms. He rushed towards the door, but felt a hand wrap around the back of his shirt. Keith threw an elbow backwards and caught Shiro on the cheek. The grip disappeared from his shirt and he threw the door open, launching himself off the porch, the light blinding him as everything went white.

Keith gasped, reaching forward as he sat up in bed, ready to flee from anything around him.

He heard grumbling next to him. “Keith? What’s wrong?”

Keith struggled to catch his breath and looked down. He flinched back when he saw Shiro next to him. He moved away, back hitting the wall behind his bed as his breathing came in labored pants. His panic caught Shiro’s attention and he sat up, eyes alert as they searched Keith’s face.

“Keith, what’s wrong?” he asked, holding out a hand. Keith watched as he closed the distance slowly, taking a moment to pause each time he moved to make sure he wouldn’t bolt. When he was close enough, he cradled the side of Keith’s face in his hand. “Did you have another bad dream? What was it this time?”

Keith’s eyes darted around the room. They were in one of the rooms in the Castle. Keith relaxed slightly at the familiar surroundings. He shook his head.

“I don’t understand what just happened. I had this really weird dream that we were back on Earth, but Voltron hadn’t happened. It didn’t make sense, but please tell me we’re still the Paladins of Voltron.”

Shiro smiled. “We’re still the Paladins of Voltron. We’re still in the Castle.”

“Thank god,” Keith breathed and shut his eyes, feeling more drained than he should be after just waking up.

“So what happened after the healing pod, then?” he asked, turning his attention to Shiro. “On second thought, why are we in the same room?”

Shiro frowned. “Keith we’ve been sharing the same room for weeks. Are you sure you’re okay? Maybe you got a little disoriented from the dream.”

Keith stared at him for a moment before he vaulted off the bed and ran to the door.

“Keith?!”

He ignored the calls after him. His bare feet slapped the floor of the Castle. The lighting seemed off. It was darker than it should’ve been. He ignored it for the moment and sprinted down the halls that were strangely empty. He skidded around a corner and barreled towards the main deck.

Keith burst through the doors and froze, breath catching in his throat even as he desperately needed the oxygen. He backed up a couple steps.

“Keith, what’s gotten in to you?” Shiro asked, coming in behind him.

“Keith, is everything okay?” Zarkon asked, lips turning down in a frown.

Keith backed up, feeling the trembling start in his core and move outward. “What the fuck is he doing here?”

Shiro stepped in front of him. “What do you mean? We’ve always been working with Zarkon. You know that. He was the one who gathered us together.”

Keith shook his head. “No. Zarkon’s evil. He’s the one who was bent on destroying the universe.”

Shiro reached out for him and Keith flinched away. Pain flashed in Shiro’s eyes, but he let his hand fall away. “No he’s not. He’s using us to cleanse the universe. We’re making it better for everyone.”

“No,” he breathed. “No, this can’t be happening.”

“I really think you need to lie back down, Keith.”

He shook his head and turned on his heel. “This isn’t real,” he said to himself. “It can’t be. Shiro would never agree to work for Zarkon. This isn’t real.”

He raced through the halls, searching for something, some way to fix all of this. But he didn’t know how. He’d only managed to get out of the first dream because he’d made it through the front door. But if he was supposed to be confined to the room with Shiro, he’d already escaped that, so what was it this time?

Keith slowed when he came to the airlocks. Maybe he had to actually leave the Castle. Launch himself into space. If this was reality, he’d die. But it’s not. He knows it’s not. So there’s really no risk of death.

His fingers shook as he reached for the keypad. He pressed the buttons to calibrate it. The door slid open with a hiss. He had ten seconds to get inside the pod and another thirty for it to open and he’d be ejected. He heard pounding footsteps in the direction where he came. He smashed his hand on the keypad, breaking it apart and slipped through the doors before they closed.

It was metallic and cold in the ejection pod. He wrapped his arms around himself as an automated voice started the countdown.

_Thirty, twenty-nine, twenty eight…_

“Keith!” Shiro screamed, pounding on the glass. “No what are you doing?” He looked desperate. Raw with emotion. Everything that Shiro actually was. “I’m getting you out.”

“No.”

Shiro froze and looked at him.

_Twenty, nineteen, eighteen…_

“You can’t stop it. I’m sorry Shiro but it has to be this way.”

“But why?”

“Because I don’t belong here.”

_Thirteen…_

“I love you, Keith,” Shiro said, pressing his hand hard against the glass.

Keith nodded. “I love you, too.”

_Eight, seven, six…_

The tears poured down Shiro’s cheeks and Keith pressed his hand on the other side of the glass from Shiro’s.

_Three, two, one…_

Keith closed his eyes as the rear door opened and he was sucked into space.

His gasp quickly turned into a moan. His eyelids fluttered open and he found Shiro smirking above him, hair stuck to his forehead with sweat. Keith tightened his grip on Shiro’s shoulders, fingernails digging into the skin there.

“Fuck, Shiro,” he groaned, toes curled as the head of Shiro’s cock pressed against his prostate.

“Took you long enough to wake up. I thought you were going to come in your sleep,” he said with a grin.

“I guess it wasn’t good enough for me to wake up to,” he said, smirking back.

Shiro quirked an eyebrow. He thrust in hard, grinding his hips against Keith’s ass. Keith’s eyes fluttered shut as heat sang through his veins. He became aware of how painfully hard he was and reached down to relieve some pressure, but Shiro smacked his hand away.

Keith made a sound of protest. “Shiro!”

“I want you to come untouched.” And if that statement didn’t light an explosion in Keith’s stomach. Shiro quickened his pace, pounding fast and deep enough to make Keith’s toes girl. He bit his lip to try and keep moans from spilling out, but Shiro pulled his lip free, kissing him instead.

Keith dug his heels into the mattress as he felt his orgasm creep closer. The muscles in his lower abdomen tightening, painfully slowly.

“Fuck, Shiro. Harder, faster, I’m so close.”

He wanted to wrap a hand around his cock, but knew Shiro would only stop him. He chose to dig his fingernails further into Shiro’s skin instead. Shiro thrust faster, angling Keith’s hips upward with his hands. Keith’s breaths caught in his throat as his toes curled. He felt like he was teetering on the edge, close enough to fall, but couldn’t quite manage it.

His stomach tightened even more and then he was falling over the precipice. Keith’s back arched against the bed as his stomach was painted white. He tightened around Shiro, drawing a groan from him. He managed a few more thrusts before he was following after Keith.

Keith closed his eyes and relaxed to try and calm his heartrate. Shiro slowly pulled out and stretched out on the bed next to him. Keith fought through the haze and blinked his eyes open, staring at the ceiling above him. He didn’t know what he was looking at. Didn’t even recognize it.

He’d gone from one world to another and just when he thought he was finally going to be free, he was shoved back into it all again. He pushed himself into a sitting position and looked down at Shiro who was watching him with a dazed smile. It quickly fell away as Shiro’s brows drew down in confusion.

“Is something wrong, Keith?” he asked.

Keith sighed and stood from the bed, not caring that he was butt naked. “When is this going to be over?” he asked.

“Keith what are you talking about? You’re worrying me.”

“Cut the shit,” Keith snarled. “Stop with the fucking distractions. I know you’re trying to distract me from why I’m here in the first place. You want to trap me in my own mind to keep me from rediscovering my own memories and who I am. So stop with the games and the distractions and the deflections. Face me!”

Shiro smirked and stood from the bed. The look seemed out of place on Shiro’s face because it was anything but kind. Keith narrowed his eyes.

“You did seem to have a sense of spunk about you when you kept getting out of my little traps, but I never thought you’d be able to turn it back on me.”

Their surroundings dissolved, replaced by something darker and tinged with purple.

“So now that you’ve figured out it was me behind all of this, how do plan to get rid of me?”

“What can I do to convince you to leave? You haven’t exactly been the most compromising since like ever,” Keith said, crossing his arms.

“How about a fight?” Shiro asked. “That is what you do best, isn’t it? If you win, you get your memories, but if I win…”

“Literally nothing fucking changes?” Keith asked.

“I was thinking more along the lines of trapping you in your mind so that you’re stuck living out any fantasy that I want to subject you to,” Shiro purred.

Keith hummed. “What kind of fight. Hand-to-hand?”

“If that’s what you want to limit it to,” he sighed. “But I was so hoping to use more mind tricks to throw you off your game.”

“I don’t think so. Pick your weapon of choice,” Keith scoffed.

Racks of weapons sprung to life around them and Shiro’s eyes scanned them. Keith automatically reached for a small dagger. It wasn’t the broadsword he’d gotten used to using as his bayard, but he’d had enough close combat that it was second nature.

Shiro hummed but turned away from the racks, straightening his arm so it glowed. “I think I’ll use the weapon I have at hand instead.”

“Fine,” Keith agreed. “Prepare yourself.”

The weapons fell away, leaving them alone. Keith widened his stance and gripped the knife tightly. He knew this was going to be the most intense fight of his life.

Only one of them was going to make it out of this alive. It didn’t make a difference that the fight was happening inside of Keith’s mind.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel we might be nearing the end of this fic. But for now, enjoy what I think is an epic fight scene and some new developments. 
> 
> <3 MOLIM

Keith’s muscles tensed as he waited for the first move to be made. If need be, he was prepared to die. And not in the way that had happened before so he could end the fantasy he’d been trapped in. He knew that if he chose to die this time it would be it. There wouldn’t be any way to come back from something like that. But he wasn’t going to allow himself to fall at the hands of this thing. This Galra mind whatever that wanted to torment him for the rest of his life.

Shiro watched him, eyes narrowed. His hand glowed a soft purple from where it was angled away from Keith. Keith wondered if he was prepared to stay there forever. It was a way to trap him without having to actively trap him. But then he wasn’t getting to do anything to him. And Keith wasn’t about to let them be stuck in a standoff.

Energy thrummed under his skin and through his veins. He wasn’t anxious. Fighting always thrilled him. It was a sense of anticipation. He breathed through his nostrils and finally let himself move, rushing at Shiro who grinned, lips pulling open over sharp teeth.

Keith swiped up with his knife, Shiro blocking easily with his hand, not that Keith expected anything less. Their hands were forced apart and Keith kicked out with his foot, hitting Shiro squarely in the stomach. Shiro was pushed back a step and glared at him. Keith grinned.

“Looks like someone thought they could underestimate me,” he quipped.

Shiro’s eyes narrowed further. The energy under Keith’s skin had abated slightly, the tide a little less rough, but the gravity of the situation still weighed down on him.

Shiro rushed at him, keeping low. He swept his arm out and Keith deflected, forced to step back as his arm came back down. Keith swung his knife in an arc and knocked his arm off course. Shiro went with the movement, Keith spotted Shiro’s opposite fist as it swung back towards him. He caught the fist in his hand with a growl.

Keith pushed back, aiming to sink his knife into Shiro’s stomach, but his blow was matched, pushing them apart. Keith flipped his grip on the knife handle, the blade coming to point backwards. He rushed forward, ducking low as Shiro threw his arm out. He sliced towards Shiro’s stomach, but he twisted away, sweeping a leg out to knock Keith’s legs out from underneath him.

Keith valuted over the leg, rolling down over the floor until he could pop back up to his feet. He sprinted back towards Shiro, getting into the feeling of fighting and the rhythm of the way his body moved. His blade met Shiro’s hand. He ducked, avoiding another fist and managed to land a blow to Shiro’s stomach before Shiro’s Galra arm caught him on the shoulder. He stumbled backwards, balance upset, but regained his footing.

His shoulder throbbed, but he didn’t hesitate rushing him again. He sliced upwards, meeting Shiro’s hand and forcing them apart with a shower of sparks. He caught Shiro’s fist as he tried to land a punch and kicked out his foot towards Shiro’s stomach, keeping his hold on Shiro’s hand so he couldn’t stumble backwards and put space between them.

He doubled over with a gasp and Keith brought his other hand down on Shiro’s back, sending him sprawling on the floor. He grabbed his hand and pulled it upwards along his spine, digging a knee into his lower back. Shiro growled underneath him and Keith smirked, but before he could revel in any sort of victory, Shiro rolled.

He forced Keith onto his back, the pressure between their bodies, forcing his grip to loosen so Shiro could escape his hold.

“Surely you didn’t think it would be that easy?” he asked with a grin as Keith got to his feet.

Keith narrowed his eyes and watched Shiro as he walked in a wide circle around him. Keith followed him, watching every movement he made. Shiro darted forward when he blinked and pushed him back as Keith fought to parry each of his blows.

“Ack,” he gasped, when Shiro gripped his shirt, lifting him off his feet. The material pulled uncomfortably around his neck and cut off his air supply.

Shiro grinned. “You seriously think you’re strong enough to defeat me?” he barked out a laugh and threw Keith across the floor. Keith rolled to a stop and grit his teeth against the pain, pushing himself to his feet.

“No. I didn’t think it would be that easy. But it showed me you’re not as strong as you think you are,” he said, wiping a drop of sweat from the side of his mouth.

Shiro’s grin fell from his lips and he scowled. Keith briefly thought it might not have been the best idea to piss off the thing that could torture him mentally for the rest of his existence. But what would it matter when he was prepared to die. He watched Shiro’s movements carefully as he hurried forward. He pulled his arm back to direct a blow. Keith dropped underneath his range as it swung up towards his head and used his back leg to push himself forward, cutting Shiro along the leg.

He spun around, elbowing Shiro in the back and sending him to one knee. He could hear the harsh breaths he was sucking through his nose.

_“Keith.”_

He froze and looked around, gaze drawn back to Shiro as he staggered to his feet.

_“Keith, please wake up.”_

“What the hell is that?” Keith asked, pointing his blade towards Shiro. “We agreed this would be hand-to-hand. No mind tricks.”

Shiro chuckled lowly and turned to face him. There was a fire deep in his eyes. “We did. And that’s not me.”

“What is it then?”

Shiro didn’t immediately answer.

“Tell me!” he shouted, gritting his teeth.

Shiro looked up at the void above them. “It’s reality.”

Keith furrowed his brow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

_“Has there been any change?”_

_A sigh._

_“No.”_

Shiro’s grin pulled wide. “It’s reality filtering in. Those voices you’re hearing, those are the voices of the people who are actually with you. Outside.”

_“Don’t worry, Shiro. I’m sure he’ll wake up soon.”_

Keith’s heart nearly stopped. Shiro was waiting at his bedside? If Shiro was there then he had to get out. He couldn’t let himself become trapped.

“Ooh someone got excited by that,” Shiro said, noticing the change in him. “Guess we should make this a little more interesting.”

Before Keith could really focus himself, Shiro was up in his space. He staggered backwards, barely blocking a fist that was thrown in his direction. He sucked in a gasp and fought to get his feet underneath him without letting Shiro land a hit. A blow glanced off his forearm and he winced at how it caught his skin, but he didn’t have enough time to ready himself when Shiro’s fist sank into his stomach, forcing him onto his back.

He coughed and clutched at his stomach, looking up at Shiro where he stood over him, grin harsh. He swiped out his leg and took out Shiro’s legs from underneath him, sending him to the floor. Keith rolled over, throwing his weight on top of Shiro to keep him pinned to the floor. He pressed his knife against Shiro’s throat, forcing his head to stay pressed against the floor.

_“I don’t know if you can hear me…” A sigh. “Even if you can’t, I just want you to know how much I love you. You kept me going when I was trapped by the Galra. I fought with everything I had to stay alive and get out of there if it meant coming back to you.”_

Keith’s eyes widened at the admission. Shiro saw that as his chance and rolled them, keeping his weight on Keith’s stomach and pressing the hand holding his knife into the floor.

He tutted. “It’s not good to get distracted.”

Keith ignored him, staring up at the white expanse above his head and taking in the words.

_“I was crushed when you didn’t remember me. I thought that the universe was throwing it all back in my face and proving I wasn’t meant to be happy. For so long I made myself believe that you were all I was going to need. I just had to escape. I had to get back to Earth because I knew that’s where you would be.”_

“Is that all you’ve got? I’m so very disappointed if you’re giving up so easily,” Shiro sighed. “But if it means trapping you here…”

_“So please wake up. I don’t know what I would do if you didn’t come back to me. I can’t bear to be without you, Keith.”_

Keith finally snapped back to his senses as Shiro pulled his Galra hand back, readying another blow. He upset Shiro, grabbing his arm and pushing him to the side so he tipped to the floor. Keith scrambled backwards and got to his feet, tightening his grip on his knife.

Shiro growled and chased after Keith, movements faster now. Keith’s focus zeroed in on every movement he made, allowing him to parry each blow or duck under those he risked being too slow for. The pace of their fight increased, sparks flying every time Keith’s knife hit Shiro’s arm.

What Shiro-the real Shiro-had said echoed around him. He drew strength from the admission and was reminded how much he was fighting for. It wasn’t just himself and his mind that was on the line. He was fighting for Shiro, too. He was fighting to get back to him so he could be with him. So they could live their life together and make new memories.

Keith moved faster, going beyond Shiro’s movements against him. He saw his surprise as Keith snuck in his own blows, sending punches to Shiro’s stomach and slicing with his knife. Shiro lost momentum and Keith pushed him backwards as he got slower and weaker.

Shiro threw up his arm. The move was sloppy and Keith knocked it out of the way easily, pressing the blade of his knife up against Shiro’s throat. Shiro stared at him, chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. He was wary now. Weakened and placed in such a vulnerable position wouldn’t allow for him to be careless. Not that Keith was going to give him much of a chance to wiggle out of the situation.

“I guess I underestimated you, Keith,” he said, swallowing thickly.

“You wouldn’t be the first,” he growled.

He opened his mouth to say something else, but Keith turned his blade and slashed to the right, cutting a violent opening along Shiro’s neck. He watched as he stumbled backwards, clutching at the wound that didn’t bleed like a normal one.

“You beat me,” he said as black waves poured from the cut and blew through the air.

Keith stared at him, watching as he stumbled and more of the black matter disappeared. Shiro dropped to his knees. For a moment, Keith a flash of panic at the sight of him looking so weak and hurt, but he reminded himself this wasn’t the real Shiro. His Shiro was waiting for him out in the real world. And he had to get back to him.

Shiro’s body fell to the ground and he watched it disappear, his limbs turning into the same black matter that floated away to dissipate.

He let out a breath when Shiro’s body was completely gone. He turned around, wondering where he could go now. When he made a full circle, he caught sight of a wooden door that looked eerily similar to the one from the shack. He tightened his grip on his knife and took a deep breath before striding towards the door.

The knob was cool in his palm. He turned it, finding it moved easily and pushed the door open, stepping into a blaze of yellow light.

Keith blinked, trying to clear the black spots from his eyes. The light shone around him, engulfing him. He looked around, wondering what he was being faced with now. He’d beaten Shiro, well, the thing Shiro was supposed to represent.

The light next to him brightened and he blinked against it as an image came into focus. He stared at himself. He was dressed in an orange uniform and was carrying a stack of books in his hands. Keith recognized the walls of the Garrison. He had a paper in his hand and was obviously looking for the room he’d be living in.

The scene morphed to another one at the Garrison. He was in a training room, lined up with other cadets. They were staring forward and had their hands clasped behind their backs. Keith recognized Shiro standing in front of them with another officer-Iverson, his brain supplied. Shiro was talking to them and rubbing the back of his neck. It was obvious this one of his first times in charge of other recruits.

The images came faster. Shiro and Keith walking through the halls, eating lunch together, and in the flight simulator. The first time Iverson had reached out about his progress and offered him the opportunity to become a part of the Kerberos mission. Keith and Shiro celebrating.

They drove out to the shack for the first time. They had a bottle of something that made their cheeks flush and smiles come easier. That was the first time they kissed, but it wasn’t the last. More training and more weekend trips. Sneaking into Shiro’s room because he had his own when Keith still had a roommate.

Heated make out sessions until finally they made plans to go all the way. Shiro cooked a huge dinner for them. It was too much food for them to eat and they didn’t eat as much as they could have, too caught up in being together and taking things to the bedroom. Keith laying underneath Shiro and stroking a thumb across his cheek, gazes locked before their touches became more exploratory and heated.

One moment morphed into more, led to tearing off clothes and barely pulling apart if it meant the end to kisses. They could hardly walk down the hall without pulling each other into broom closets or empty classrooms to steal a kiss or ten.

Then Kerberos came and they had a shared room on the shuttle. The Holts were happy to have them and Matt and Keith were learning to build a friendship after him and Shiro were such good friends. They all became closer as they flew by planets and crossed the solar system.

Keith held his breath as he watched the landing, old nervousness filling his stomach even though it was nothing more than a memory. He saw how successful it was and the messages they sent back to Earth and the hours they had to wait for a reply.

Then they got started on their work collecting the ice samples until it all went horribly wrong and the Galra showed up. Keith watched himself desperately make a grab for Shiro until everything went black and he woke up in front of the Commander.

The fear and the pain of facing off against the Galra and being pulled away from Shiro felt so real. More than once, he had to check himself as a reminder that he wasn’t there experiencing all of this and that it was nothing more than a memory. He closed his eyes as he was hit with the laser and everything went black, fighting back a sob at the raw desperation and pain that it invoked as he fought to stay with Shiro.

Keith wrapped his hands around himself as the last image faded. He fought down the trembles that wracked through his body.

“Thank you, thank you,” he whispered.

He was expecting the lights to dim, but instead another image burst forth. It was him waking up in the Garrison. He watched the memories pass by where he fought to compile his research and figure out what was wrong. He watched himself fight to rescue Shiro and everything that followed: Shiro’s pain and their trek into space.

He watched the distance that slowly closed between them and the love that started to bloom. Keith felt it deep in his heart. It felt even more powerful and astounding since it had happened twice. They’d managed to come together despite everything that insisted on standing in their path.

He watched his confession on the planet with Shiro next to him and being rescued. He watched the kiss they’d shared before he was put into the pod and then it ended when he was pulled out only to be left to the trap of his mind.

He sighed as his surroundings returned to normal. He squared his shoulders and looked around him, taking in the endless expanse of yellow.

“I’m ready,” he whispered. “I’m ready to go back. I’m ready to be with Shiro. No matter what comes our way.”

The light blazed brighter and he closed his eyes to keep from being blinded.

Keith’s forehead furrowed in concentration. He felt a tight grip on his hand and he flexed his fingers unconsciously.

“Keith?” Shiro’s voice came to him softly.

He blinked his eyes open and was met with the ceiling over his bed. Or a bed, he wasn’t sure if he was actually in his room or not. He turned his head and found Shiro staring at him, gaze a little watery and smile wobbly on his lips.

Keith smiled and squeezed Shiro’s hand, bringing his other up to cup Shiro’s cheek. He brushed his thumb over the skin.

“Hi Shiro,” he whispered. “I didn’t keep you waiting too long, did I?”

Shiro choked out a laugh and turned his head to kiss the palm of Keith’s hand. “You could’ve woken up a lot sooner if I’m being honest.”

“Well I’m here now,” Keith said closing his eyes. He felt strangely exhausted after having just woken up. “I’m here now.”


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when I said I felt this fic was coming to an end, I honestly didn't think it would be so soon, but here we are, I guess? 
> 
> Anyway, I enjoyed writing this last chapter and something interesting I saw today when I was working on it was that the first chapter of this fic was posted July 1 2016 and the final chapter is being put up January 7 2018 so we're going from 7/1 to 1/7. I dunno I just thought it was cool that the dates were inverted. 
> 
> Thank you to everyone who's read from the beginning or hopped on this crazy train along the way. It's been a great year and a half. Thanks to all of the lovely people who've left comments or reblogged my work on tumblr. It's definitely meant a lot as I worked through everything. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy the last chapter regardless of when you joined up. ^.^
> 
> <3 MOLIM

“I’ll go tell the others you’re awake,” Shiro said, but Keith’s eyes snapped open and he snagged his wrist before he could move off.

“Wait,” he said.

Shiro gave him a curious look.

“Give me a minute before the interrogation starts. I don’t know if I can handle them yet considering I went out with a blaze of glory into a partial coma,” he said, huffing a laugh to goad a smile out of Shiro.

Shiro’s lips quirked up and he settled himself on the floor next to the bed. Keith pushed himself into a sitting position and turned to lean against the wall so he was facing Shiro.

“How long was I out?” he asked.

Shiro winced. “A couple of days actually.”

“Damn. I didn’t think it had been that long,” Keith said, raising his eyes to the ceiling.

He cleared his throat. “We found Lance and Hunk while you were still asleep. They had a pretty exciting adventure with some sea creatures that I’m sure you’ll love to hear about. Some mind control stuff happened.”

Keith quirked an eyebrow. “Mind control?” That hit a little too close to home at the moment since he’d been at risk of becoming enslaved in his own brain.

“Not the most appealing thing, I know. I’m glad that wasn’t the planet that we ended up on,” Shiro said.

“Yeah,” he agreed absently.

Shiro reached out and took Keith’s hand between his, rubbing at the skin. “Are you okay? You’re still all here, right?” he asked, eyes searching Keith’s.

Keith was tempted to tell him there was even more than there was before, but in a moment of selfishness he kept his mouth shut. He could tell him later when he knew they wouldn’t be interrupted by questions from Allura about what had happened. He rocked forward, the hand that wasn’t sandwiched between Shiro’s went to the back of his neck and he claimed Shiro’s lips in a slow, deliberate kiss.

He titled his head, coaxing Shiro’s lips open and felt Shiro sag against the bed. He wasn’t sure if it was out of relief or because it was having the same effect it was having on Keith where his insides were becoming warm and turning to mush. He pulled away with a sigh and leaned their foreheads together, watching as Shiro slowly managed to flutter his eyelashes open to meet his gaze.

“What was that for?” he rasped, voice thicker with emotion than Keith expected it to be. He shouldn’t really be surprised. He knew he’d feel the same way if it had been Shiro stuck in a coma after coming out of a pod screaming and thrashing.

The corner of Keith’s lips ticked up into a gentle smile that he knew hadn’t graced his face in a long time. “I love you.” Shiro’s eyes widened. “And I missed you.”

Shiro let out a long breath and his eyes fell shut with the admission. “Keith, I-“

“Shh,” he whispered. “Take a minute and collect yourself. I need to talk to Allura, I’m sure. And after that the two of us need to take some time to ourselves, okay?”

Shiro nodded against him and Keith pulled back so he could untangle his legs and climb from the bed. He held a hand out to Shiro even though he didn’t need it and pulled him to his feet. Shiro rocked closer and ducked his head for a kiss. Keith gave into it easily, sighing when they pulled apart. He gave Shiro’s hand a squeeze before turning towards the door.

It slid open easily and Keith stepped out into the hallway, feeling lighter than he had in probably weeks. Maybe even months. Shiro trailed after him, pulling Keith’s hand a little bit behind him. He navigated the hallways easily, heading for the main deck where he hoped Allura would be.

He turned the corner and smiled when he saw Allura looking over the screens in front of her.

“Pidge do you have any leads on the location of those coordinates Shiro was worried about?”

“I’m still working on it,” she said, tapping away at her computer. “But we can’t do anything until Keith wakes up. Being down one paladin would be tough but we all know Shiro’s head wouldn’t be in any fight we got caught up in anyway.”

“I don’t think that’ll be a problem,” Keith said.

It was almost comical how both of them whirled around to face him and he couldn’t stop the grin that pulled at his lips.

“Keith!” Pidge exclaimed, pushing herself out of her chair and running over to him. “When did you wake up? Why are you out of bed? More importantly, you worried all of us,” she said, smacking his arm.

Keith chuckled and rubbed at his arm good naturedly before pulling Pidge into a tight hug.

“Sorry,” he apologized. “Trust me when I say I didn’t go willingly. I’m okay. A little tired, but I’m okay.”

“You just woke up after being knocked out for a couple days and you’re tired?” Pidge asked, disbelief thick in her voice.

“I know it doesn’t make sense, but you’ll understand when I tell you what happened.”

“Well that’s something we’re all dying to hear,” Allura broke in with a smile. “I’ll call the other paladins and you can tell us all about what happened.” She turned and pressed the comm and sent the announcement over the speakers.

Hurried footsteps sounded before the other two paladins rounded the door.

“Hey guys,” Keith said, raising a hand. “Long time no see.”

Hunk was the first to move, wrapping his hands around Keith and spinning him in a tight hug. Keith chuckled and patted him on the shoulder when he was set back on his feet.

“Thanks Hunk. So, should I get started?” he asked, turning back to Allura.

She nodded and gestured to the seats that were positioned on the deck. Keith walked over to his and sat down, twining his fingers together in his lap.

“So?” Allura asked. “What happened?”

“Well when I was in the pod I started finding bits of my memories. I thought I was slowly getting things back, but there was something I wasn’t expecting. As I started to remember more, I got this searing pain in my head. It felt like everything was splitting open because something was keeping me from remembering what I needed to.”

He saw Shiro make a face out of the corner of his eye.

“That’s when you pulled me out, but when you sedated me, you sort of put me into a coma. Or my brain kept me there. I’m not entirely sure on the details, but they’re not important right now.”

“So what happened in your coma?” Pidge asked. “It’s obvious you didn’t just wake up from it. Did you?”

Keith shook his head. “Definitely not. And I wouldn’t have woken up if I hadn’t realized what was going on.”

“What do you mean?” Allura asked.

“Whatever Galra technology was used on me to block my memories it…stayed with me I guess. There was the physical block where I couldn’t remember my past, but there was a physical, well mental, manifestation, I guess. As physical a manifestation there can be on a mental plane,” he muttered. “Basically, I was faced with this sort of dream scenario but it wasn’t a normal dream. I was trapped and if I managed to escape one situation, I’d be met with another one.”

“So how did you escape it?” Allura asked.

“I recognized the pattern.”

“Which was?” she asked.

Keith looked up at Shiro who was watching him. “Shiro.” His eyes flicked back to Allura. “The Galra mind block manifested as Shiro.”

“What?” Shiro asked.

Keith looked at him and smiled. He could see the shock there and the guilt that was already forming in his gaze. “It’s not your fault Shiro.”

“But…I-“

“No,” Keith said, standing from his chair and walking over to him. “You didn’t do anything. It was the Galra.” He took Shiro’s hand in his and squeezed it. “I knew it wasn’t you.” He turned back to the rest of the group. “I fought it. Literally.”

“What, like hand-to-hand?” Lance asked.

“Exactly like that,” Keith said.

“So, so what would’ve happened if you’d lost?” Shiro asked.

Keith cleared his throat. “I’m not sure if you want to know the answer to that.”

“What does that mean?”

“Well,” Allura broke in before Shiro could ask again or Keith could answer. “I think that’s enough of an explanation for now. If you’re alright with it we can run additional tests to make sure there isn’t any lingering effects or other problems.”

“I think that’s a great idea,” Keith said, relieved.

She nodded. “Let’s aim for moving to the new coordinates tomorrow. That’ll give you time to recoup and get something to eat and,” she glanced at Shiro, “talk.”

“Thanks, Princess,” Keith said.

“Of course.”

Keith heaved a sigh and nodded at Lance and Hunk before looking up at Shiro who was watching him.

“Follow me,” he muttered and walked past him to the hallway. He crossed his arms as he walked, listening to Shiro’s footsteps behind him. He focused on each step forward as he wove through the halls until he was at the room with the windows that looked out at space beyond.

“So,” Shiro said. “What would’ve happened if you’d lost to the mental Shiro you were fighting against?”

Keith rubbed his hands against his arms and turned to face Shiro who was several feet away from him. “If I hadn’t won…I would’ve been trapped in my mind. Forever. But…” he stopped and licked his lips.

“But you wouldn’t have let that happen,” Shiro interrupted, eyes boring into him.

Keith nodded. “Right.”

“So-“ Shiro started and stopped. The look in his eyes was desperate. Keith could see the fractures in his gaze. The pain that was lingering at the back of his mind. “I know you, Keith. I know what you would do and you wouldn’t have let yourself be trapped. So it wasn’t a choice between escaping and being trapped, it was a choice between…” Keith bit his lip as the first tear slid down Shiro’s cheek. “It was a choice between living and dying for you.”

Keith’s heart clenched. He wanted to step forward and go to him, but he held back, pressing his arms around him tighter instead. “You’re right. I knew that if I couldn’t escape I was going to die in my head. I would’ve left you behind with no explanation as to what happened to me. But you have to know, Shiro, that losing wasn’t an option for me.” He stepped forward and reached out as more tears slid down Shiro’s cheeks. “I wasn’t going to lose. You’re the reason I made it out, actually.”

“Me?” he asked, huffing a laugh. “How?”

“I heard you,” Keith said, reaching up to wipe Shiro’s tears away. “Your voice filtered in to me when you were by my bedside. I heard what you were saying to me and it helped. It kept me going and I beat it.”

Shiro sniffed and smiled. “Glad I could…help?” he asked.

Keith smiled and rocked up on his toes, giving Shiro a gentle kiss. “There’s more.”

Shiro wrapped his arms around Keith and leaned their foreheads together. His eyes slid shut and he sighed. “Do I want to know?” he asked.

Keith’s smile widened into a grin. “I think this is something you’ll be happier to hear.”

Shiro’s brow furrowed and he opened his eyes, looking at Keith. Keith bit his lip, trying to keep the joy from shining outright on his face.

“What’s with that look?” Shiro asked.

“You get it, don’t you?” Keith asked. “Galra Shiro was the mental block. I fought the mental block. I escaped.”

Shiro tilted his head and looked at Keith.

“Come on, Shiro,” Keith sighed. “You’re smart. Surely you can put the puzzle together when the pieces are all in front of you?”

Keith gave Shiro a pointed look and watched as his brow furrowed. He looked to the side in deep thought, crevices forming between his eyebrows. He blinked several times and looked back at Keith, his mouth dropping open. He opened and closed it several times and Keith grinned.

“You-you-you,” he stuttered. “You remember?” he breathed. “Everything, you remember?”

Keith nodded. “After I beat the block, everything came back to me. I remember my life, the Garrison…you,” he said softly. “I remember everything about our relationship and going out to the shack and the Kerberos mission.”

Shiro pulled him tightly against his body and pressed his face into Keith’s neck. Keith brought up one of his hands and ran it through Shiro’s hair, giving him a moment to process everything. He felt something wet against his neck and squeezed Shiro closer.

“It’s okay, Shiro,” he murmured. “Everything’s okay.”

He let out a shuddering breath and pulled back, cupping Keith’s face in one of his hands. “I’m just…I’m so glad you’re back.” He leaned in and captured Keith’s lips in a kiss, his lips coaxing Keith’s open so he could slide his tongue inside. Keith shivered against him.

“Shit,” Shiro said when they pulled apart. “I never thought. I mean…it wasn’t everything for me. When you wanted to start a relationship with me again I was happy enough with that, but…I hated that you didn’t remember everything we’d already shared. I hated that you were so frustrated and upset over something you couldn’t control.”

“I know, I know,” Keith said, brushing away some of the tears on Shiro’s cheeks. “But I managed to fall in love with you twice even when it seems all of the odds were against us. And if I can do it twice, nothing else can get in the way as much as the Galra or the rest of the universe tries to keep us apart.”

Shiro smiled and laughed weakly. “Meet me later,” he said, backing away.

Keith’s arms hung awkwardly in the air for a moment before he dropped them. “What?” he asked, watching a grin pull against Shiro’s lips.

“Meet me later, Keith,” Shiro said again. “There’s something I want to do. Something I need to do.”

“Okay? Can you tell me? What’s gotten in to you?”

Shiro hurried back over to him and stole another kiss. Keith chased hiss lips when he pulled away and Shiro grinned.

“Meet me later. I’ve got something I’ve got to do. Something I may or may not have been waiting to do.”

Keith huffed a breath as he watched Shiro break into a run down the hallway. He shook his head and turned away, running his fingers over his lips and squeezing his arms close around his torso. He looked out the window and watched the stars as they crawled past. He bit his lip, feeling giddy about everything that had happened. He didn’t know what Shiro was planning, but he trusted him in whatever it was.

~~

Keith stared at the door. Shiro had left him the cheesiest note he’d ever read in his room, telling him to meet him at this part of the Castle. Shiro was standing in front of him, grinning like an idiot and Keith just raised an eyebrow at him.

“Care to show me inside?” he asked.

Shiro held out a hand and Keith rolled his hands before placing his fingers against Shiro’s palm. Shiro gripped his hand and walked backwards, pulling Keith along as the door slid open and let them inside. Keith looked around at the black space. They were on a flat platform that led to a circular area with a console.

“What is this place? I’ve never been here before,” Keith asked, looking around.

“I asked Allura if we could use it and she gave me permission,” he explained and Keith could see a flush dust his cheeks even as they walked to the end of the platform.

“So what are we doing here?” Keith asked.

“It’s a surprise.”

Keith raised an eyebrow and watched as Shiro hit several commands on the center console. Light burst around them and once it cleared, they were in a field surrounded by blue flowers.

“A field?” Keith asked.

Shiro rubbed a hand against the back of his neck. “A field, yeah, but it was more for the flowers…” he said, trailing off.

Keith knelt and ran his fingers over the soft blue petals, looking at the yellow ring around the black center. “What are they?” he asked.

Shiro squatted next to him and wrapped his fingers around the stem of one. “They’re called forget-me-nots,” he said, clearing his throat.

Keith froze, his head jerking up to look at Shiro who was staring down at the flowers in front of him.

“I thought it was only appropriate after everything you’ve been through and I couldn’t give you the real flowers so I thought virtual ones would have to-oof!” He was cut off as Keith tackled him to the ground.

He stared up at Keith with wide eyes and Keith smiled down at him, cupping his face in his hands.

“Takashi Shirogane,” he sighed. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget you, but if I do, I know you’ll be around to help me remember.”

Shiro smiled and Keith leaned down to brush their lips together. Shiro wrapped his arms around Keith and rolled them over, staring down at where Keith’s head was framed by soft blue flowers.

“I love you,” he sighed and dipped his head to kiss Keith again and again, giving him something else to remember.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated! I'd love to hear what you think of the set-up so far and whether you're interested in me continuing this or not. 
> 
> If you want to chat over on tumblr: my-one-love-is-music.tumblr.com
> 
> <3 MOLIM


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